BALTIMORE—The UMBC volleyball team put up a valiant effort in front of a big RAC Arena crowd of 511, but Ohio State defeated the Retrievers, 3-0, as action concluded at the Madison Bingaman Memorial Tournament presented by BWI Holiday Inn Friday night. Earlier in the day, the Retrievers (3-4) defeated Howard, 3-0.

UMBC vs. Howard Video Highlights

In the first match of the day, freshman Rebecca Garrigues (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) had her best match in a Retriever uniform, recording 21 assists while adding a hitting percentage of .600 with six kills on 10 swings to lead UMBC over Howard, 25-21, 25-18, 25-14.

Four other freshmen also contributed significantly, including Ali Goc (Oshawa, Ontario, Canada/R.S. McLaughlin Collegiate) with 10 kills and Emily Vandegrift (Leesburg, Va./Loudoun County) with a .583 hitting percentage and eight kills. Mallory McIntyre (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada/St. Mary's Academy) added 15 assists and two service aces and Emily Witsaman hit .375 out of the middle.

"I thought they (the freshmen) did a nice job of settling down and started passing better midway through the first set," head coach Ian Blanchard said. "Once we did that, everything else fell into place."

Senior Sabrina Hoeks (Olympia, Wash./AG West Black Hills) just missed a double-double with nine kills and eight digs, while adding four service aces. The Retrievers outhit the Bison .374 to .178 and held 9-5 advantage in serving.

"I thought we put a lot of pressure on them with our serve and that shifted the momentum our way," Blanchard said.

UMBC vs. Ohio State Video Highlights

In the night cap, the Retrievers and Buckeyes were neck and neck all throughout the first set, but Ohio State won 25-22, 25-11, 25-19. The first set featured seven ties and the Retrievers were as close as 23-22, but Buckeyes prevailed on two UMBC errors.

"I was really proud of our effort tonight," Blanchard said. "We could have come out and played scared, but we were focused and did not hesitate."

Hoeks led the Retrievers, hitting .429 with seven kills and added four digs and three service aces. Freshman Hallie Carter (Huntington Beach, Calif./Edison) had a game-high 12 digs.