In 4 sets, 20-25, 25-21, 25-21, 26-24, earning an away & away split with the suddenly slumping Buckeyes. Tonight’s loss to the Gophers dropped OSU to 15 & 4, with 3 of their losses coming in their last 3 matches. (Plus a 5-set early loss at Nebraska.)
Tonight’s match was similar to the Buckeye win at the Pav (20-25, 21-25, 22-25) in that not only were the set-scores close, each set was close all the way. This was epitomized by Set 4, which was tied at 7-7, 11-11, 14-14, 18-18 and 24-24; the Gophers enjoyed 3-pt lead early, but never trailed by more than 2. The team hitting and blocking numbers for the match were basically even, but the Gophers had 5 aces (none for OSU), with 4 of them coming in Set 3.
I said previously that we needed to win one of these two tough matches this weekend to guarantee a top 16 seed for the NCAAs. (We came into the weekend #9 in the polls and #13 on the RPI; two more losses would have put us on the bubble for a top 16.) A 16 seed is critical because it usually means we’ll host the first two rounds. And in the Gophers 27th match of the season, the Gophers got their first big road win. After starting the Big Ten with 1 win & 2 losses, the Gophers have won 13 of their last 16 last Big Ten matches.
Taylor Landfair, after an off-day last Sunday against Rutgers, led the Gophs with 25 kills. (And I thought she looked okay on serve-receive.) Carter Booth had 13 kills and 7 blocks, and I had Arica Davis with 6 kills and 3 blocks, so a decent night for our Middles. Wooker had 10 kills and Wenaas 8, but both were a little streaky; Wenaas had zero kills in our Set 1 loss, but was effective later; and Wooker played well early and late, but went cold during a stretch early in Set 4. McGraw was brilliant as always.
Tonight’s win takes the pressure off for tomorrow night’s season-finale at Lincoln. The Gophers have clenched a top-16 seed, and even a win tomorrow won’t earn us a top-4 seed. But momentum going into the NCAAs is helpful, and a win might earn the Gophs a 5 to 7 seed vs a 10 to 12 seed if we lose. Wisconsin, with tonight’s win at Nebraska, clenched their 4th straight Big Ten Title; their only loss at the Pav – in straight sets.
If you’re watching tomorrow night’s match (8:00, BTN), notice that Nebraska plays a 6-2, i.e., they alternate two setters, always in the back row, which lets them use two big opposites, meaning slightly more offense and slightly better blocking. This could be a bigger advantage than usual on the second night of a brutal back-to-back weekend. Watch to see if Shaffmaster or Landfair looks tired. Eagan’s Kennedi Orr is one of 3 setters Nebraska uses.