When a team like Ohio State rolls into town, you need to bring your A-game. But, when you’ve never beaten the Buckeyes, and this is the first time since 2005 they have traveled to BG, you have to give them a warm welcome. 

4,201 fans flooded the Stroh Center, shattering the previous volleyball record of 2,961 fans. The Falcon faithful were not done there as the Orange and Brown also broke the Mid-American Conference (MAC) volleyball attendance record of 4,184, the previous highest since the stat started getting tracked in 2011. 

“Just unbelievable, the whole university got behind us, behind our program. Thank you to Dr. Rogers and his leadership, thank you to Derek van der Merwe, thank you to our ticket office, thank you to everybody,” Bowling Green head coach Danijela Tomic said after the four-set loss to the Buckeyes.

You could feel the animosity in the air as the Buckeyes were on a 12-game winning streak against the Falcons, and the fans were refusing to let that streak continue.  

While the “orange wave” was ultimately unsuccessful, they were treated to a phenomenal game, with all four sets ending within five points.

“There were just people standing all around; it was just amazing, and you could feel the love the entire game,” Bowling Green’s fifth-year middle blocker Alexis Mettille said. 

The environment was truly a jaw-dropping showing from Falcon fans, who were able to make the Stroh Center shake with how loud they were able to be. 

“When I came here in 2012, the administration asked me if we wanted to have the bleachers where the Anderson Club is pulled in because they didn’t think we would have that many people in the stands, and I said ‘absolutely not we are going to build a program that is going to pack this place,’ Tomic said. “It took 13 years, but we did it.”