yt- ' .
Buckeyes use balanced attack
Freshmen shine in match
By David Moyer
Staff Reporter - _ .
The Mideast Regional volleyball
championship match was an open
and-shut case. Ohio State handed
Nebraska a loss Saturday night, and
the Buckeyes did it with a balanced
attack.
The Ohio State Buckeyes closed
the door on Nebraska’s season and
made reservations for the Final Four
after a 9-15,15-9,17-16,15-7 victory
over the Comhuskers.
They did it despite being outhit
.248 to .205 by the Nebraska attack.
The Buckeyes also weathered a 30
kill attack by the Huskers’ Cris Hall.
The B uckeycs were able to counter
Nebraska’s physical abilities with
defense and a balanced scoring at
tack, which included two seniors and
two freshmen.
With Nebraska relying on Hall to
come up with most of its offensive
big plays, Ohio Slate got 24 kills from
senior Julie Chcllcvold and 17 kills
from senior Leisa Wissler.
The Buckeyes also scored 16kills
from freshman Gabriele Jobstand 70
set assists from freshman setter Laura
Davis.__
Jobst said the ability of Ohio State
to use a balanced attack was impor
tant for the win.
“I think it helped,” Jobst said. “They
can’t just block one person so it defi
nitely helps.”
Wissler, the Big 10 player-of-the
year, said the ability of Davis to set so
many effective passes was a major
factor in the Buckeye domination.
" “(Passing) is what dictates how
well we play,” she said. “Our passing
came on, and once that slam we began
toclick.and we just foiled after that.”
Many of Davis’ passes found their
way to Jobst, who added another
dimension to the already potent Buck
eye attack.
Ohio State Coach Jim Stone said
he wasn’t shocked by the amount of
poise that the two freshmen showed
in such a big match.
“They’ve been doing that all year
so I’m not surprised,” he said. “They
are playing at a level beyond most
freshmen.”
Now those freshmen will move
Ohio State on to another level when it
faces UCLA in the Final Four in Los
Angeles. The Bruins were the only
other team to defeat Nebraska in the
Bob Devaney Sports Center this year.
Jobst said winning the Midcast
Regional and moving on to the Final
Four was a great feeling.
“It’s awesome,” she said. “I knew
the team was good when Laura and I
came in, but I was never definitely
sure of how far we could go. But as
the season progressed wc just got
better and better.”
The team is now going to set its
sights on winning the national cham
pionship, she said.
“We’ve got nothing to lose,’ Jobst
said. “Now that wc arc in the Final
Four, wc can only keep doing the
things wc have been doing and, hope
fully, that will be good enough,
f “We are definitely an underdog
because wc haven^t been-sanked in^
the lop four, so wc arc just going to
play hard and play our best.”
The Final Four will be a going
away party for All-Big 10 performers
Wissler and Chellevold. Chcllcvold
said it was the best going-away
present she could have.
“I think it’s a great way to go out as
a senior,” Chcllcvold said. “I mcan.it
can’t get any better than this. Work
ing hard all four years, whatever the
outcome is (in the Final Four), we
made it.
“There’s going to be other teams
sitting at home watching, and wc are
Koine to be there.”
NU seniors finish with fire
oy jonn AOKisson
Staff Reporter
The only non-senior Nebraska
volleyball captain watched Satur
day as her two co-captains bowed
out with fire.
Comhusker sophomore setter
Nikki Strieker had nothing but praise
for seniors Cris Hall and Janet Kruse,
her co-captains, after Nebraska was
eliminated by Ohio State in the
NCAA Midcast Regional Final.
“I feel so bad for Cris and Janet,”
Strieker said. “They worked so hard
all season, and tonight they were
unstoppable.”
Unfortunately for Nebraska,
_ Ohio State was unstoppable longer.
The Buckeyes earned a trip to next
weekend’s Final Four in Los An
geles by beating the Huskcrs 9-15,
15-9,17-16,15-7 at the Bob Dcva
ney Sports Center.
Nebraska finished with a 27-5
overall record, but the loss ended a
two-year streak of Final Four ap
pearances by the Huskcrs.
“I just wish that things would
have worked out a little bit better
for them,” Strieker said of her gradu
ating co-captains. “They deserved
to go. but we didn’t pull through
for them.”
Hall and Kruse both put on big
time tarewell pertormances. Hall
blasted a career-high 30 kills and
hit .349 while Kruse added 12 kills,
made 17 digs and finished the match
with a .267 hitting percentage.
Strieker, who finished with 63
set assists and 12 digs, said the
Buckeyes’ aggressiveness was the
key to Ohio State’s win.
“It was their night,” she said.
“They were aggressive the whole
match, and they never let up for a
second.”
Strieker, juniors Eileen Shan
non and Stephanie Thaler, and
freshman Kim Tonnigcs arc start
ers who will return next year. But
gone arc Nebraska’s top-two out
side hitters in Hall and Kruse.
Having come so close to reach
ing a third consecutive Final Four
will make the Huskers even more
determined to return next season,
Strieker said.
“Being a sophomore, I can look
ahead,” she said. “We can look at
the role model the seniors gave us
this year, and say that they worked
this hard for this, so we have to
work this hard or harder for next
year.”
Strieker said she expects next
year’s team to be as successful as
this year’s.
“We’ll be back,” she said.
Final
Continued from Page 8
third game, but rather the second game,
in which Nebraska lost an 8-4 lead to
lose the game 15-9.
“I think that was the key to the
match,” he said. “We just didn’t play
well from that point (leading 8-4)
through the 14th point of the next
game.” „
Ohio State cruised in the fourth
game, jumping out to leads of 6-0 and
13-4 on what were mostly Nebraska
errors.
The Buckeyes sealed the win and
their first ever trip to the Final Four
when Chcllevold pounded her 24th
kill into the back comer of the Ne
braska court.
Chcllevold was one of three Buck
eyes with a double-figure kill total.
Senior Lcisa Wissler nailed 17 kills
for Ohio Slate, while freshman Gab
riele Jobsl added 16. Buckeye fresh
man setter Laura Davis also notched
70 set assists.
Stone credited the Ohio State de
fensive effort as a major key to the
victory.
“\U»--I ____ • ._
' ~ wf m j iu 5^1 miu 3iiu*
auons where ihc points and rallies
were extended,” Stone said. “Our
players showed a great deal of pa
tience.”
Nebraska dominated in every match
statistic except the scoreboard. The
Huskers outhit the Buckeyes .248 to
.205 and oulblocked Ohio State 17-7.
Stone said the difference was that
his team won the points that counted.
"This team all year long has had
the ability to win big points,” he said.
“Winning big points is a big part of
our game.”
Pettit agreed.
“It’s rare to lose a match when you
outhit a team,” Pettit said. “But there
were streaks, and all of our errors
were at the same point. It’s when you
do what you do.
Nonetheless, Hall said that the loss
had been a case of Ohio Slate just
playing belter on a particular night.
“If we’d come back and play again
tomorrow, the outcome may be dif
ferent,” Hall said. “And I still think
that if we would have the opportunity
to come back, we could still win a
national championship.”
f
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