For the first time in program history, Ohio will play a match televised on national television Thursday against the team that handed the Bobcats their first loss in Mid-American Conference play.
Ohio (22-4, 12-2 MAC) was defeated in four sets by Kent State on Oct. 10, but this time around the Bobcats will play on their home court during the last weekend of conference play.
“The match against Kent will be to get the one seed in the MAC and host the conference tournament the next year,” coach Ryan Theis said. “There’s quite a bit on the line Thursday night.”
During the teams’ first meeting, Kent State outside hitter Kelly Hutchinson recorded 22 kills in four sets, including seven and six kills in the final two sets, respectively. After holding a 22-17 lead down the stretch of the fourth set, Kent State scored the last seven points to clinch the match.
“If (Hutchinson) goes off for 22 (kills) again, then it’s going to be hard to win,” Theis said. “What got us last time was just the point runs, but that’s more about execution than anything.”
Kent State (12-15, 6-8 MAC) has lost six of its past eight matches, including two four-set losses against Miami and Bowling Green last weekend. The Golden Flashes rank second to last in the conference in opponent hitting percentage in MAC contests, allowing a clip of 242 percent while the Bobcats are first at 15.4 percent.
Ohio is able to clinch a MAC regular season title with a win Thursday, which would give the Bobcats the right to host the conference tournament next year.
“We want to go out strong because we’re really motivated to go out and get that ring,” Liis Kullerkann, a redshirt junior outside hitter, said. “We want to have the conference tournament here next year and that is motivating us to win.”
Time Warner Cable SportsChannel and ESPN3 will televise the match, and Theis is excited for the publicity opprotunity, which will allow Kullerkann’s parents to watch online from Estonia.
“It’s huge for our program to be able to have (people) watching nationwide and even worldwide,” Theis said. “It’s been great for the MAC this year to have these regular season matches and hopefully it continues to grow.”
While the Bobcats are excited for the opportunity to be televised, they’re focused on clinching the No. 1 seed for next weekend’s MAC Tournament.
“(Thursday) is a chance to close out (the MAC) and a chance to make a statement on our home court,” Alexis Pinson, a graduate student middle blocker, said. “It’s still just another game and we have to go out there and play our best like we do every game.”
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