Volleyball splits weekend games
The CMU volleyball team stayed at .500 after splitting games against Miami (Ohio) and Bowling Green last weekend.
The Chippewas, now 4-4 in the Mid-American Conference, opened the weekend with a five-set loss to Miami in Oxford, Ohio, but kept a balance record with a 3-1 win Saturday in Bowling Green, Ohio.
“All the MAC matches are very tough,” said coach Erik Olson. “I believe this is the most balanced the conference has been in my five years.”
The second set against BGSU saw one of the biggest comebacks for Central, as the team was down more than five points with the Falcons needing only one more point to close the set. CMU would win it 26-24.
“We attack really well against Bowling Green,” Olson said. “We played that match start to finish like we were going to win.”
The win against Bowling Green stopped a three-game losing streak for the Chippewas.
“Now that we finally got that monkey off our back of losing the last few games, we are ready to get back to playing the rest of the MAC,” said junior outside hitter Lauren Krupsky. “The win gave confidence that we can lose a tough match and get past it.”
Down to the wire
Friday’s loss to Miami was the team’s second consecutive loss in the fifth set.
“We could have won that match but, when a game goes to five sets, it comes down to a couple of good passes or a couple of good swings,” Olson said.
Central controlled the fifth set with a 12-10 lead, but Miami rallied, winning 15-13.
“We started out with decent passion in the first set,” Olson said. “We played with outstanding passion in the third and fourth set, and the fifth set just slipped away from us.”
Olson said the team will be more dependant on its youth moving forward.
“The rest of the season really depends on some of the younger players,” Olson said. “The challenge is there so they have to just go out and compete.”
CMU hosts Buffalo on Friday and Akron on Saturday. Both matches will start at 7 p.m. at Rose Arena.
The volleyball team has eight regular season matches before of the beginning of the MAC tournament. The tournament begins at campus sites Nov. 17 and the championship game is Nov. 22 at the Seagan Center at Toledo. CMU lost in the quarterfinals last season.
