HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – In a challenging first match of the season, Northern Kentucky (0-1) dropped a three-set (10-25, 18-25, 14-25) decision to 11^th-ranked Ohio State (1-0).
  
STATS LEADERS 

• Reilly Briggs terminated at a .267 clip, finishing with six kills.
• Anna Burke had 13 digs to lead the Norse.
• Anna Brinkmann put away six kills and registered nine digs.
• Katy Yopko and Miranda Wucherer handed out 10 and eight assists, respectively. Wucherer put away six kills for the Norse.
• Ohio State was led by Gabby Gonzalez with 15 kills.
   

FIRST SET SUMMARY   

• Ohio State jumped out to an early 8-1 lead in the set and never looked back in a 25-10 decision.
• The Buckeyes terminated 11 attacks, compared to just five for the Norse, and had advantages in both aces (3-0) and blocks (4-1).

 
SECOND SET SUMMARY   

• NKU fared much better through the mid-way point of the set, holding leads at 7-6, 12-11 and 13-12.
• OSU responded with six-straight points and forced the Norse to call both timeouts during the run.
• Northern Kentucky fought to the end, but lost the set, 25-18.

 
THIRD SET SUMMARY 

• The third set started in a fashion familiar to the first with Ohio State opening on a 6-0 run, forcing an NKU timeout.
• OSU extended the run to 8-0 before Kanakry put an attack away.
• The Norse rebounded to play nearly even the rest of the way, but dropped the set 25-14.

 
MATCH NOTES   

• The Buckeyes had 38 kills thanks to a .349 hitting percentage.
• Northern Kentucky finished with 26 kills and hit just .010.
• NKU nearly matched OSU in digs, but the Buckeyes held a slim 40-37 advantage.
• Ohio State was stout at the net and registered 16 blocks to Northern Kentucky's four.

  
NEXT UP 
Northern Kentucky stays in Columbus, Ohio, and will face Ohio on Saturday in a 3 p.m. match at Nationwide Arena.