After sneaking a ball through the Northwestern defense and killing a rally, setter Michelle Jantsch huddled with her teammates for their usual post-point celebration.
Quickly enough, though, the celebration ended as the referee waved the point off because of an infraction on the senior. The argument - and the looks of frustration following the fruitless effort - proved to be a portrait of a trying weekend.
It was difficult. It was difficult to play
said coach Ryan Theis. You could tell it was just really tough for our team. We never really got a rhythm going or a focus.
Ohio (6-4) dropped two of three matches in the Baymont Inn & Suites Invitational this weekend at the Convo. After defeating Big East bottom-feeder Pittsburgh Friday afternoon, the Bobcats fell to both Tennessee and tournament champion Northwestern.
While both will be a loss in the record books, the defeats were different, as Tennessee barraged Ohio with kills, with Northwestern choosing to attack holes in the Bobcats' defensive sets.
In Friday's late contest, Tennessee (8-1) used a combination of speed and power to pound Ohio throughout the match. Three players tallied 13 kills, and the Volunteers' play above the net proved difficult for the Bobcats to defend.
They're just a different beast entirely Theis said. They're going to swing hard
and they're a bigger blocking team. We play better against a bigger team like Tennessee
and that showed this weekend.
After winning the first set, Ohio dropped the next two and looked unimpressive and sluggish in the process. The Bobcats were able to bounce back, though, winning the fourth set and forcing a decisive fifth.
In the final set, the Bobcats had two serves to win the match, but the Volunteers fought back both times, eventually winning by a tally of 18-16.
Friday's loss to the Volunteers ended a 14-game home winning streak for the Bobcats.
The next day, the Bobcats faced a different test in Northwestern. Instead of power, the Wildcats combined finesse and precision to place ball after ball into empty spaces in the Ohio defense in the four-set loss.
They're awfully consistent
Theis said. They pass well
they serve well and just do everything really well.
In the first set, the Bobcats and Wildcats traded points back and forth until the score was tied 8-8. Then Northwestern was able to score eight of the next nine points, stealing momentum that Ohio was never able to regain.
Ohio collapsed in the second set and looked overwhelmed in the process.
The Bobcats managed to win the third game with the help of some impressive play from Jacobi and Katie Post. Both managed to tally 15 kills in the contest.
Despite the rare home losses, Theis was happy with his team's resilience.
I feel like we're not going to give up
Theis said. I feel like we're going to fight. We're a fighting group. We work hard
we play hard
we play with energy and passion.
