April 29, 2012

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The No. 10 and top-seeded Ohio State men's volleyball team fell to No. 2 seed and seventh-ranked Lewis in five sets (20-25, 25-17, 22-25, 27-25, 15-10) Saturday night in the MIVA championship game inside St. John Arena. The Buckeyes (21-9) took two of the first three sets, but could not keep the Flyers (26-6) at bay in the final two frames.
 
Buckeye senior All-American Shawn Sangrey led all players with 31 kills and a pair of services aces in the effort. Freshman Michael Henchy added 15 kills while redshirt-freshman Peter Heinen tallied 63 assists. Juniors Grayson Overman and John Tholen each added nine kills. Tholen led the Scarlet and Gray with three blocks, all assisted.
 
The trio of Sangrey, Henchy and Tholen collected all-tournament accolades following the contest.
 
The teams tied seven times through the beginning of the first set before the Buckeyes took an 8-7 lead. Three kills from Sangrey sent the Scarlet and Gray roaring through a 7-2 run to extend their lead to 17-11. Ohio State took advantage of a service error and a pair of attack errors by the Flyers, including the final point of the frame, to claim the opening set, 25-20.
 
Lewis responded in the second set, overcoming a trio of early Ohio State leads. The Flyers completed a 6-2 run to establish a 16-10 lead. Henchy's kill brought the Buckeyes within five at 20-15, but Lewis held on with a 5-2 rally to tie the match at one set apiece.
 
The Flyers built off the momentum of the previous set to take a 5-2 lead in the third with the help of a pair of assisted blocks from Jay Petty and Matt Gallik. After Lewis went ahead by two, OSU reeled off a 7-2 swing to earn a 19-16 advantage with kills from Henchy, Overman and Sangrey. Ohio State maintained its three-point lead to a 25-22 win as Mik Berzins capped the set with one of his three kills on the night.
 
Down 15-9 in the fourth frame, Buckeyes used a seven-point swing to climb to a 16-15 lead on the strength of a pair of kills from Henchy and two service aces from Sangrey. A kill by Lewis' Greg Petty gave his team a 21-19 lead before Sangrey recorded three-consecutive kills to put OSU ahead. The teams reached ties four times afterward until the Flyers claimed the set, 27-25.
 
The Flyers took the first point in the fifth set and never relented. Jay Petty picked up five kills in the frame, including the final two points to seal the win for Lewis. The Buckeyes rallied to pull to a 12-10 deficit but a three-point run clinched the Flyer victory, 15-10.