The George Mason men's volleyball team took to the
road for the first time all year on Tuesday night and the Patriots were unable
to stay perfect on the young season as Mason fell at No. 10 Ohio State, 3-1.
The Buckeyes took a 29-27, 25-21, 20-25, 25-17 victory. Fans can watch the
match on Thursday when it airs via tape delay on the Big Ten Network (DirecTV
channel 610) at 4 p.m.
Shaun Sibley had 11 kills and just one error on 16
attacks while Mark Jones had 18 kills. The Patriots (3-1) hit .313 in the match
but Ohio State hit .347. The Buckeyes also had a 7-0 edge in service aces and a
39-27 edge in digs. Grayson Overman had 11 kills on 13 attacks for the 2-2
Buckeyes. Shawn Sangrey and Kevin Heine combined for 31 kills.
Mason fell behind repeatedly in the opening set,
trailing by as many as five, 16-11, before rallying to tighten the set. The Patriots
were within three at 22-19 when they made a major move, winning four of the
next five points to tie the set at 23-23. Mason turned the tables and had set
point thrice, at 25-24, 26-25 and 27-26 before the Buckeyes won three straight
to close out the set and take a 1-0 lead.
Mason used the momentum from the tight first set to
go up 15-11 on Ohio State in the second set. But a timeout by the Buckeyes
allowed them to regain their composure and a 6-2 run evened the match at 17-17.
It was still even at 20-20 when Ohio State's used a Mason service error to take
the lead and Shawn Sangrey served three straight points to make it 24-20. From
there it was easy enough for Ohio State to go up 2-0.
The third set saw Mason in a funk early, falling
behind 5-2, but the Patriot rallied to tie the score several times. The final
tie was 13-13. At that point, Mason won four of the next five points to take
control. Ohio State was able to close to within one at 18-17, but Mason
answered with three straight points and was able to close out the set, winning
seven of the final 10 points.
The fourth and final set was never in doubt as the
Buckeyes went ahead 4-1, then built it to a 12-6 edge and final they made it
20-14 before holding on for the 3-1 win.
The Patriots return to action on Friday when they
host Springfield at 7 p.m.
