Ohio State
The first true Big Ten road game experience left an impression on the Louisville native.
“They have one of the loudest arenas in the Big Ten, even though it’s really small, so that shook us up a little bit because we weren’t used to the fans compared to last year,” she said. “I think we were shaken up when we played Purdue, but once we started playing at home and getting in front of our fans, they give us a lot of confidence.”
But before returning home, Ohio State had a match in which the Buckeyes lost in straight sets at No. 20 Penn State. From that point, the season could have gone in one of two directions. When they returned to practice after a day off, Ryder said it didn’t take long to see how Ohio State would respond.
“We easily could’ve went our separate ways and dug a hole for ourselves, but we responded really well by coming into practice and making it known that we want to get better every practice, whether it’s building relationships throughout the team or getting through a really hard drill,” she said.
In the four games since, the Buckeyes haven’t lost a set while blowing past Indiana, Maryland, Michigan State and, most recently, Michigan. Their win last Sunday was in front of a Covelli Center record crowd of 4,098 and came against a Michigan team that had just won at No. 8 Minnesota days before.
Along the way, Oldenburg said the Buckeyes have gotten back to playing with confidence and taking big swings.
“I think we got tentative and a little bit scared (against Purdue),” the coach said. “In practice, it was about creating opportunities for them to just go swing and not hope for the best, but (if we lose) we’re going out swinging. We’re going to be the aggressors and not be tentative from an offensive standpoint.”
That has paid recent dividends. The hope is that it can also help break a streak that extends back to 2017: Ohio State has lost seven straight to the Boilermakers. Fifth-year senior Hannah Gruensfelder is the only remaining member from the unranked team that upset No. 13 Purdue, 3-1, on the road that season.
Oldenburg has reviewed their meeting from this year and knows what her team is capable of.
“Looking back and watching video I’m going, ‘Oh man, if we play well we can do a number on Purdue,’ ” she said. “Now, they’re a good team, a great team, but if we play the way I know we’re capable of playing, I know that would be a different outcome, even in a hostile environment.
“The fact that we’re 0-7 against them, it makes me so mad, but I can’t control that. I feel like our mentality is in a great place. We’re excited for this opportunity.” ajardy@dispatch.com @Adamjardy