No. 13 Buckeyes Look to Gain Experience, Confidence In Texas

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The No. 13 Buckeyes travel to Austin, Texas, this weekend for their second-consecutive appearance at the First Point Collegiate Challenge—the place where last year, they took down No. 1 UCLA.

The tournament begins a seven-game stint facing American Volleyball Coaches Association Top-15 teams.

Kevin Burch, now in his sixth year as head coach of the Buckeyes, said playing tough competition is important in setting the right tone for the season.

“It’s kind of like swinging a weighted bat before you get in,” Burch said. “It’s important to get that experience. We’re ready to play and we’re ready to get exposed to that type of competition.”

The Buckeyes will face No. 11 Stanford Friday (8 p.m./ESPN+) before a rematch with reigning national champion No. 1 UCLA Saturday (8 p.m./ESPN+). Last year, Ohio State topped the Bruins 3-2 in a reverse sweep at the Austin (Texas) Convention Center.

Shane Wetzel, a junior opposite hitter from Lake Mary, Florida, said the team hopes to replicate that this weekend.

“Offensively, we just have to play our own game,” Wetzel, who was second among the Buckeyes in kills last season, said. “We have the attackers to compete with a team like UCLA and we’ve been putting in the work to do that.”

Ohio State enters the weekend 2-2 overall after opening the season with No. 6 BYU and Fort Valley State in Columbus.

Despite having a younger roster than last season – losing key contributors Jacob Pasteur, Noah Platfoot and Michael Wright – Wetzel said continuing to grow with changes on the court is key to succeeding this weekend and beyond.

“I think if we just keep taking it step-by-step and learning to grow with each other, we’ll be able to play well,” Wetzel said.

Senior middle blocker Cole Young, from nearby Powell, Ohio, said it’s important to go into the weekend with the right mindset.

“We’re just continuing to work on things we can get better at, whether that’s connections with the setter, or serve receive,” Young, who tied the Ohio State record for hitting percentage in a match—10 kills on 10 swings—in the 3-0 win against Fort Valley State on Saturday, said. “Hopefully we can excel at those things and do pretty well this weekend.”

 

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