The Bobcats have experienced the highs and lows of conference play in just three weeks.
After losing to Bowling Green and Miami two weeks ago, Ohio is getting a good taste of success in the Mid-American Conference. Last week they swept a scrappy Kent State team on the road and gutted out a five-set thriller with Eastern Michigan on Saturday.
The Bobcats will travel to face the Toledo Rockets tonight.
They will hope to have junior outside hitter Ellen Herman, a Toledo native, back in the lineup. She has been struggling with an ankle injury.
Coach Ryan Theis' team has won eight consecutive matches against the Rockets.
The team hasn't lost in Toledo since 1997, when most of his roster was still learning to write cursive.
The Bobcats carry a similar winning streak to Muncie, Ind., tomorrow to face the Ball State Cardinals in Worthen Arena.
The two squads have met for 40 matches all-time, and Ohio has been on the winning side 31 times.
Both of these teams are very aggressive serving
Theis said. It's much different from Kent and Eastern.
In their home gyms, passing will be the highest premium for us, as far as the most difficult skill we need to execute.
Sophomore setter Michelle Jantsch this week's Mid-American Conference East Division co-player of the week has developed into a threat not only as a passer (44 assists in five sets Saturday)
but as a sneaky blocker as well. She recorded five blocks against Eastern Michigan
a career best.
Ohio's defense will be called upon again to stop two aggressive teams
both of which would relish the chance to end their string of futility against the Bobcats.
Middle blocker Jane Sytsma
a mainstay for Ohio's stingy defense so far in MAC play
said her fellow blockers will try to stay gritty again this weekend.
We're studying the hitters' tendencies, Sytsma said. Just making sure none of the balls go untouched. We want to be really scrappy this weekend as a group.
When our defense is scrappy
that's when we can really utilize our offense and be quick to the ball and be effective. It really comes down to the defense.
The Bobcats enter the weekend first in the MAC with 2.38 blocks per frame, fueled by Sytsma and fellow middle blocker Meghan Simons, who both rank among the conference's top 10 blockers.
The team doesn't seem overly concerned with playing a five-set match the week before either.
Ohio won their first full-length contest against Eastern Michigan, and the players have said the team's morale and confidence is the biggest beneficiary.
It's a benefit to be down 1-2
then come back and win
Theis said. We'd love to win every match 3-0
