Ohio State women’s volleyball ended the 2021 regular season with a 25-5 overall record and a 15-5 record in Big Ten matches, finishing tied for third in the conference and earning the No. 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The Buckeyes began the season on a 10-match win streak, including a four-set victory over then-No. 4 Washington, to go undefeated in non-conference play. Ohio State went 12-1 in the Covelli Center, earning four ranked wins in Columbus.
Jen Flynn Oldenberg’s squad finished the 30-game regular season on a seven-match win streak. The team ranked in the top three in the conference in nine statistical categories, including the league lead in assists per set (13.84), opponent assists per set (10.26), kills per set (14.92) and opponent service aces per set (.80).
Ohio State ended the year with sweeps over Rutgers and Maryland. The Buckeyes dominated the Scarlet Knights on Nov. 26, outscoring their opponent 75-52 in three sets before a more challenging clean-up of the Terrapins (25-19, 25-23, 25-18).
This year, the Buckeyes will play in their 26th NCAA Tournament and second in a row following a three-year hiatus. Ohio State — which has advanced to the Final Four twice in 1991 and 1994 — will face Howard in the first round at 7 p.m. on Friday, with the winner of the North Carolina-Tennessee match waiting in the second round at 6 p.m. on Saturday.
Women’s Ice Hockey
Ohio State women’s ice hockey earned two wins over St. Lawrence and Penn State in the “D1 in D.C.” tournament played in the nation’s capital over the weekend.
Game 1
The No. 2 Buckeyes defeated St. Lawrence, 5-2, and won their first non-conference game since the 2019-20 season after playing a conference-only schedule last year because of the pandemic.
Ohio State scored just once in the first period, as Gardiner capitalized on the Saints penalty with under eight minutes to play. However, the Saints closed out the period with another goal to take a 2-1 lead at the first intermission.
Ohio State won the game in the third period, propelling itself to a 4-2 lead. Gabby Rosenthal started the period with a game-tying goal at 4:36, tipping in a shot from Bizal. Jenn Gardiner’s second goal of the day came during the Buckeyes’ second power play at 15:03. Levis added another goal over a minute later, collecting her rebound and beating St. Lawrence’s Lucy Morgan. Sophie Jaques tallied the Buckeyes’ final goal, scoring an empty netter and a shorthanded goal with just 33.5 seconds to play.
Andrea Braendli recorded 15 saves in her seventh win of the season.
Game 2
On Nov. 27, Ohio State (14-2-0) beat Penn State, 4-2, to improve to 28-8-1 in non-conference play under head coach Nadine Muzerall.
Jaques started the game with a goal. The senior capitalized off the Buckeyes’ first power-play opportunity of the evening only 11 minutes into the contest. Clair DeGeorge added another goal 24 seconds later to give the Buckeyes a two-score advantage at the first intermission.
Penn State capitalized on two late-first period penalties by the Buckeyes with a goal in the opening minute of the second frame. Jaques restored Ohio State’s two-goal lead with another power-play goal at 5:14 before Jenn Gardiner added the team’s third man-up goal at 1:05.
The Nittany Lions scored their second goal to stage a comeback, but the Buckeyes maintained their lead to win. Braendli recorded her eighth victory, making 30 saves against Penn State.
