Emily Londot shines, leads OSU women's volleyball to regional final with Minnesota win

Jenaisya Moore couldn’t help but be excited for Thursday’s third-round NCAA Tournament matchup with Minnesota.

After splitting the regular-season series and the eight total sets between them, the outside hitter for the Ohio State women's volleyball team was excited to get another chance against the Buckeyes’ Big Ten rival.

“They are a feisty team, but we are feistier,” Moore said.

Emily Londot helped show just how feisty Ohio State (22-9) could be recording a career-high 29 kills to help the Buckeyes to an NCAA Tournament regional semifinal win against Minnesota Thursday in four sets (22-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-19) in Austin, Texas.

After the Buckeyes secured their third-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament's regional round with three-set sweeps against Tennessee State and USC, Ohio State earned its first regional semifinal win under coach Jen Flynn Oldenburg and the program's first regional final appearance since 2004.

"I think I saw that from day one when I got the job that this was a team that wanted more and wanted the program to play to be back on the map," Oldenburg said. "I think over the course of the last few years, gaining the experience we did in the postseason – not the results we wanted, of course, but that experience and the leadership and just the drive of the upperclassmen to ... do a little bit more – I think that's the reason why we are in the position we are in today."

Ohio State will face either No. 4 Marquette or No. 1 Texas in the Elite Eight Saturday.

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Along with her 29 kills, Londot. recorded 13 digs and two blocks, while Moore (13) and Rylee Rader (12) each added double-digit kills.

Ending the third set with an 11-6 run, OSU carried over the momentum into the fourth, using a six-point run to keep Minnesota at bay, earning the win with a kill by Gonzales.

Ohio State finds momentum after losing first set vs. Minnesota

After trading points through the first 18 points of the first set, a service error by Sarah Sue Morbitzer and a kill by Minnesota outside hitter Taylor Landfair allowed the Golden Gophers to start to take control, using a 8-3 run to take a four-point lead.

Londot and the Buckeyes came storming back, tying the set at 22 with her eighth kill in 11 hits. But it marked the end of a 9-5 scoring run for the Buckeyes, which allowed a three-point run by the Golden Gophers to secure their 25-22 first-set win, including two kills by Mckenna Wucherer.

In the first set, Landfair, the Big Ten Player of the Year, had five kills on her first five swings, finishing the set with a .750 hitting percentage, finishing with 16 kills on 46 hits.

Size proved to give Minnesota momentum into the second set, scoring three of its first six points from blocks, getting four blocks before Ohio State could record one. The Buckeyes’ first blocks gave them their first lead since the very start of the game with two from Podraza and Rader, and Rader and Gonzales

That lead was one Ohio State lost as Minnesota used a Wucherer kill to ignite a four-point run. But the Buckeyes’ regained the lead late using an attack error by Minnesota’s Arica Davis to start a five-point scoring run to help secure the 25-21 second-set victory, capped off by Gonzales’ third kill of the game.

The efficient hitting of the first set did not continue into the second, as Ohio State finished with 14 kills and eight errors on 43 hits, while Minnesota matched its eight kills with eight errors.

Trailing 4-2 early in the third set, Ohio State used two kills by Londot and two blocks, winning six of seven serves to take a three-point lead, which was erased with a five-point Minnesota run. But the Buckeyes broke free, using a 11-6 run to earn the 25-21 third-set win.

While the offensive momentum carried over into the fourth set, Ohio State's defense stepped up as well, allowing nine Minnesota kills and seven Golden Gopher errors on 37 touches.

Minnesota finished with a .173 hitting percentage, the second time Ohio State's defense held the Golden Gophers under a .200 hitting percentage this season.

"Kylie (Murr) and I take passion in our defense," Morbitzer said. "The whole team takes passion in our defense, but we really lead in the back row with our voices, our effort. And today, I think that really showed. We were just having so much fun, taking so many balls, giving so much effort, giving so much voice to our teammates. I think it showed off."

Ohio State's Kylie Murr, the Big Ten defensive player of the year, led the team with 15 digs, while Mac Podraza, the Big Ten setter of the year, recorded 51 assists.

Even as the Buckeyes head into their first regional final game since 2004, Gonzales doesn't think Ohio State's mentality will change.

"We're looking forward," Gonzales said. "Obviously, we're excited for what has been happening, and we're excited with the outcome that happened today. But ... (we're) working hard and taking it day by day, moment by moment and not wasting any time."

Ohio State will take on the winner of No. 1 Texas and No. 4 Marquette 6 p.m. Saturday on ESPNU.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: OSU volleyball beats Minnesota in NCAA Tournament regional semifinal