The first part of Ohio's schedule is over, and with it goes a string of Top 25 opponents.
But as head coach Ryan Theis will point out, his team hasn't won anything yet. He said the meat of the schedule ' the Mid-American Conference ' is still to come.
After losing to ranked opponents Penn State, UCLA and Hawaii in the Hawaiian Wahine Classic, the Bobcats returned to the mainland refocused.
They rattled off seven consecutive wins, including a drubbing of former No.14 Middle Tennessee State, before losing to Tulane in five sets.
Junior outside hitter Ellen Herman, Ohio's most consistent player through the first 11 matches, said that the slate is clean when conference play begins.
The first season is over
Herman said. The (Mid-American Conference) season is all-new.
It's good to play against teams we face often and that we have rivalries with. If they play hard, we play harder.
Ohio began pre-match scouting for weekend opponents Akron and Buffalo yesterday and Theis gave a preliminary assessment of their first conference opponents.
The teams we played last weekend were physically bigger and stronger, but this weekend, these teams are more passionate, Theis said.
This season has been a story of streaks for the Bobcats who recently had their seven-match winning streak broken at home.
Ohio has won six consecutive MAC openers
and is 23-22 all-time against the Zips
who visit the Convocation Center tomorrow.Staverman fitting in
Freshman defensive specialist Nicole Staverman has been one of the surprises for Ohio this season.
A native of Edgewood
Ky.
Staverman came to Ohio as a highly regarded defensive player
and was named to PrepVolleyball.com's Defensive Dandy Lions list in 2007.
I'm fitting in really well. I love the town, the campus, and I'm fitting in well with this team, she said.
Staverman admits her serve is still a work in progress.
But her work is paying off. Staverman is among the Bobcats' team leaders in aces with nine
and is serving at a respectable 83.1 percent.
We have to serve aggressively as a team, she said. It keeps teams out of system and causes problems.
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