Buckeye excellence is not exclusive to the football field or the basketball court. Around the Oval is our way of keeping you informed of the amazing things happening with the other 34 varsity sports on campus.
Closed Book
The Ohio State baseball team's magical postseason run came to a close this weekend as the Buckeyes dropped back-to-back games to Louisville and Wright State in the double elimination regional.
Ohio State began the tournament right where it left off, downing Wright State in a walk-off fashion, but things turned sour in a hurry when the Bucks took on Louisville, Saturday. The No. 2 overall seed Cardinals put up 10 runs in the first three innings and from there coasted to a 15-3 victory.
The Buckeyes' then faced an elimination game against Wright State, Sunday afternoon; it did not go as planned. Playing its ninth game in 10 days, Ohio State fell to the Raiders 7-3, ending its season.
The loss ends an impressive late season run. After a sub-par start to the 2016 season, the Buckeyes got hot when it mattered, winning 13 of their last 16 regular season games, and six against ranked opponents.
The magic continued into the Big Ten Tournament. The Buckeyes, who just a week before were in danger of not even qualifying, made an epic through the tournament, winning four games in just over 24 hours to lock up their ninth Big Ten Tournament Title and a bid to their first NCAA Tournament since 2009.
Ohio State finishes the season 44-20-1, boasting the most wins of any Big Ten school this season, and the fifth most in school history.
The Buckeyes graduate a bevy of seniors. Outfielder Jake Brobst, second baseman L Grant Davis, pitcher John Havird, pitcher Michael Horejsei, infielder Troy Kuhn, outfielder/lpitcher Daulton Mosbarger, infielder Ryan Leffel, shortstop Craig Nennig and infielder Nick Sergakis all played their last game in an Ohio State uniform.
With the departing talent, it will be a new-look Buckeye team next season.
Rich Getting Richer
The Ohio State men's volleyball team was nothing short of dominant during the 2016 season. The Buckeyes lost just three matches, and closed the season on a 23-match winning streak that included wins in the MIVA Tournament Title match and the NCAA Championship match.
The good news for the Buckeyes – this could just be the beginning. Ohio State returns nearly every contributor this upcoming season, including the reigning National Player of the Year Nicholas Szerszen.
In addition, the Buckeyes are adding three American Volleyball Coaches Association High School All-Americans to their ranks – Outside hitter Reese Devilbiss from Northeastern High School in Maryland, right-side hitter Jake Hanes from Carl Sandburg High School in Illinois, and setter Andrew Hillman from Parkland High School in Pennsylvania.
With the returning talent and the incoming freshmen who could contribute immediately, the Buckeyes will be heavy favorites to defend their NCAA Title at the 2017 NCAA Championship, which happen to be hosted in Columbus, Ohio.
"We'd love to do this in Columbus next year – we've got pretty much everybody coming back," said Ohio State head coach Pete Hanson following the title game. "Everybody's going to be good next year, we're just going to have to work our ass off to defend it."
Other Scores and News
- Track and Field: Ohio State competes in 12 events at the NCAA Championships June 8-11th in Eugene, Ore.
2015-'16 Title Count: 2
- Pistol
- Men's Volleyball
