Box Score (COLUMBUS, Ohio, January 3)—The McKendree University men's volleyball team closed out its first weekend of the 2015 regular season with a four-set loss Saturday afternoon at No. 14-ranked Ohio State University. The host Buckeyes won by scores of 25-20, 22-25, 25-17 and 25-20.
 
McKendree is now 0-2 overall and in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association. The Bearcats will play their home opener on Friday when Grand View University comes to town for a non-conference match. First serve is set for 7 p.m. at the Harry M. Statham Sports Center.
 
Sophomore right-side hitter Maalik Walker (Shorewood, IL/Minooka) paced McKendree with 12 kills and a .524 hitting percentage. Walker also connected for a pair of service aces against the Buckeyes. Freshman middle blocker Brendan Schmidt (O'Fallon, MO/Fort Zumwalt West) added 10 attacks while hitting .500 in the contest. Freshman setter Ian Zalewski (Orland Park, IL/Carl Sandburg) helped out with 34 assists for the Bearcats.
 
Ohio State (2-0, 2-0 MIVA) broke open a close first set with a 5-1 run to build a 14-10 advantage. McKendree chipped away at the deficit and pulled to within 17-15 before the Buckeyes reeled off three straight points and held on for the opening-set win.
 
McKendree bounced back with a strong performance in the second set to even the match at 1-1. A kill by freshman outside hitter Nolan Rueter (Burlington, WI/Burlington) broke a 6-6 tie and sparked a 5-1 run of its own as the Bearcats took an 11-7 lead. McKendree pushed its margin to as many as seven points on five different occasions to close out the win and knot the contest.
 
The Buckeyes hit .591 in the third set to regain a 2-1 advantage in the match and were able to hold a McKendree rally attempt midway through the fourth set to close out the match. Miles Johnson led Ohio State with 16 kills, while Michael Henchy connected for 13 kills and added a team-best six digs. Christy Blough dished out a match-high 47 assists for Ohio State.