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It may have only been in a preseason match, but Ohio State middle attacker Shawn Herron made the most of his third start in the last two years.
Herron had a match-high .733 attack percentage and 11 kills as Ohio State swept Dalhousie 25-17, 25-15, 25-19 in its preseason opener Friday in University Park, Pa., at the Penn State Fall Invitational.
The 11 kills tied a career-high for the junior who spent the majority of last season coming off the beach as a serving specialist. In addition, Herron led all players with four blocks against the Canadian school Dalhousie.
Along with Herron, the Buckeyes had three players finish with at least nine kills. Middle attacker Driss Guessous had 11 kills and a .600 attack percentage, while all-conference outside attacker Michael Hency added nine kills.
The Buckeyes in the exhibition match opted to start freshman Christy Blough at setter. Blough in his preseason college debut finished with a match-high 34 assists and guided Ohio State’s offense to out-hit Dalhousie .440 to .134.
Outside attacker Alex Dempsey in the loss had a team-high 11 kills and was the only Dalhousie player with double-digit kills
The Buckeyes also finished the match with 10 aces, including sophomore middle attacker Mitch Vallis having a match-high seven aces.
Ohio State entered this preseason after finishing last season in fourth place in the MIVA and losing in the conference tournament quarterfinals.
The Buckeyes following the preseason sweep will conclude the Penn State Fall Invitational as it plays Monterey Tech on Saturday.