BGSU volleyball (7-6, 1-0) took down the Ohio Bobcats (2-11, 0-1) in a Mid-American Conference (MAC) opening night matchup on Thursday in the Stroh Center. 

Bowling Green’s defense took center stage, as they had plenty of diving saves to keep the rallies alive, finishing the match with 56 digs.

On multiple occasions in the game, sophomore Sydnie Hernandez flew across the court to make diving saves to give the Falcons a chance at an offensive attack.   

“We made some big digs in big moments, and that’s kind of what changed momentum and can shift a game,” head coach Alex Delpiombo said.  “I love that mentality that I can dig every ball, I can block every ball.” 

It was not just digs that kept the defense humming, but the blocks that the Orange and Brown were able to set up. 

“I think that we’re physical and we should be blocking like that, we spend a lot of time on blocking, it’s the first line of defense and everything kind of happens after that,” Delpiombo said. “It’s almost to the point, which I love, if we don’t stuff someone, our players are mad about it.” 

Having that strong a defensive mentality and effort is something that Amanda Otten echoed as a big point of emphasis for this season.  

“It’s kind of a point of pride that we know we can get these balls up, when we are simple, it is easier,” Otten said. “Just being us and having the conviction that we can do something like this was just the mentality of it.” 

The Falcons started the season with a strong defensive win where they were able to hold the Bobcats to a negative 0.57 hitting percentage in the first set of play. Shutting off any type of early momentum that Ohio hoped to start MAC play with. 

This defense is something that everyone can get involved in as Otten, Hernandez and Avery Anders all racked up more than 10 digs a piece.   

Bowling Green is back in action on Friday, as they welcome Kent State to the Stroh with first serve slated to start at 6 p.m. Falcon Media Sports Network’s Andrew Smith and Daniel Ridenour will have the radio broadcast on WBGU 88.1 FM, beginning at 5:45 p.m.