BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University volleyball team will return home to the Stroh Center on Friday (Sept. 20) to host the Ohio State Buckeyes before transitioning the series to Columbus, Ohio on Sunday (Sept. 22). For the home match, the Falcons are looking to break the Stroh Center attendance record, aiming for 3,000 fans. It will also be an Orange Wave with fans asked to wear Orange for the BGSU. The match on Friday is scheduled for a 6 p.m. first serve with Sunday set for a 1 p.m. start.

Weekend Schedule
Bowling Green vs. Ohio State | Friday, Sept. 20 | 6 p.m. | ESPN+
Bowling Green at Ohio State | Sunday, Sept. 22 | 1 p.m. | B1G+

At The Match

• Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets before the match as there will be a slight increase in price for tickets purchased at the door. 
• For Falcon Fans, there will be a Pre-Match Tailgate  in the grass between the Stroh Center and Mileti Alumni Center beginning at 3:30 p.m. 
• T-shirts will be given out to the first 200 students in the student entrance. 
• The match will be an Orange Wave for the Falcons with fans asked to wear orange in the stands in support of the Falcons. 

The Packed Stroh-Inator 3000 
Against Ohio State, Bowling Green is looking to break the program's attendance record inside the Stroh Center, currently set at 2,961 from the first ever event held in the Stroh, a 3-1 win over Michigan State on Sept. 9, 2011. This year, only one MAC team has played in front of a crowd of 3,000+ with Toledo doing so on the road against Iowa State. The last time a MAC team hosted a crowd of 3,000+ was when Ohio tallied 3,863 against Western Michigan on Aug. 26, 2016. The NCAA's attendance database goes back to the 2011 season. In that span only six MAC volleyball contests have had an attendance of 3,000+, all being for Ohio. 

First Serve 

• The Falcons are aiming to break the program's attendance record in the Stroh Center, currently set at 2,961 from the first ever event in the Stroh, a 3-1 win over Michigan State in 2011. The last MAC team to host a crowd of 3,000+ was Ohio in 2016. 
• Bowling Green and Ohio State will be meeting for the 13th time in program history with the Falcons seeking their first win in the series. This will be OSU's first trip to Bowling Green since 2005. 
• Ohio State is the third Power Four team to visit the Stroh Center this year, joining fellow Big Ten member Illinois and the Big 12's Cincinnati who both came during the Best Western Invitational. 
• The matches against Ohio State will conclude the non-conference portion of Bowling Green's season, beginning MAC play next weekend on the road against Ball State. 
• Lauryn Hovey enters the weekend tied for fifth in the nation for total aces this season with 22 and her 0.71 aces per set rank seventh in the nation, both leading the MAC in their respective categories. Hovey is eight aces away from breaking the program's Rally Scoring Era career aces record.
• Jessica Andrews and Alexis Mettille are currently tied in the record book for career solo blocks, both with 33. The total places them both at 10th during the program's Rally Scoring Era, needing one more to move up to fourth on the list. 
• Amanda Otten is closing in on a new career-high for assists in a season. Otten needs 27 to set a new career-high and is coming off matches with 50 against Brown and 43 against DePaul. Otten is averaging 7.73 assists per set, which rank fifth in the MAC.
• Alexis Mettille is currently the MAC-leader in hitting percentage this season, maintaining a mark of .427 with 54 kills on 103 attacks with just 10 errors. 
• Following last weekend's DePaul/UIC Invite, Alexis Mettille was named to the All-Tournament Team for the Falcons, totaling 29 kills and 10 blocks while maintaining a .500 hitting percentage over the three matches.
• Ohio State's middle blocker Eloise Brandewie is the sister of BGSU alum Madeline Brandewie who played for BGSU from 2015-18. 
• Bowling Green is in the program's 49th varsity season with the program beginning during the 1976 season. This year marks the 42nd season in the Mid-American Conference for BGVB, officially joining the sport in the MAC in 1983. 

Brushing Up On The Buckeyes
Ohio State is coming off their home invitational, going 2-1 last weekend. OSU tallied wins over No. 20 Miami (FL), 3-0, and Buffalo, 3-2, but came up short against Wright State, 3-1. Wright State is the lone common opponent between the two with BGSU topping the Raiders 3-1 on Sept. 8 and OSU falling to WSU 3-1 on Sept. 15. Ohio State is paced by Emily Londot, leading the teams in kills (146) and aces (14) while being second in digs (70) and third in blocks (27.0). On the block, Eloise Brandewie, sister of BGSU alum Madeline Brandewie (2015-18), tops the stat sheet with 40.0 total blocks. 

On Friday, We Wear Orange 
Since revealing a new orange jersey prior to the season, the Falcons are now 3-0 when suiting up in the new Orange. As part of the university's Falcon Fridays, BGVB wears their orange jerseys on Friday and have tallied wins against Chicago State, UMBC and Brown in the new uniform. The home match against the Buckeyes on Friday will be another Orange Wave with not only the team decking out the Stroh Center in orange, but all Falcon Fans as well. 

Starting In The Middle
BGSU's middle blocker duo of Jessica Andrews and Alexis Mettille were key on the attack for the Falcons last weekend. Andrews and Mettille combined for 54 kills while registering an attack percentage of .431 on 102 attacks. On top of their impact on the attack, Andrews and Mettille were just as strong on block, combining for a total of 30 blocks, including six solo. Andrews finished with 16 block assists while Mettille finished with eight. In terms of blocks per set, Andrews is currently second in the MAC (1.23) while Mettile is fourth (1.06). Mettille also leads the MAC in hitting percentage with a mark of .427. 

Hovering Around Rally Record
Last season, Lauryn Hovey registered 59 aces, the most by a Falcon in a single season during the Rally Scoring Era and the second most all-time. So far this year, Hovey already has 22 aces, placing her in the Top 5 in the nation. For her career, Hovey has landed 107 aces, tying her for second during the Rally Scoring Era and 10th all-time. Hovey currently sits eight aces away from breaking Paige Penrod's Rally Scoring record. As for the all-time mark, Linda Popovich holds the record with 190 career aces from 1986-89. 

Follow the Falcons
Be sure to follow the Falcons volleyball team on social media
Twitter - @BGSU_Athletics and @BGSUVolleyball
Instagram - 'bgfalcons' and 'bgsuvolleyball'
Facebook - 'BGSU Athletics' and 'Bowling Green State University Volleyball'
TikTok - @bgsuvolleyball 
YouTube - 'Falcon Athletics'