Ohio State excellence is not exclusive to the football field or the basketball court. Around the Oval is our way of keeping you informed of the amazing things happening with the other 34 varsity sports on campus.
Women's basketball releases brutal schedule
Earlier this morning, Ohio State released their 2015-2016 non-conference schedule— and it's grueling. This upcoming season, the Buckeyes will face all four of last year's Final Four teams in what is possibly the most difficult schedule in the country.
Head Coach Kevin McGuff talked about the schedule in a release by the university:
"Our goal is to challenge our team early and often and I think we put together one of the most difficult non-conference schedules in the country," said Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff. "Playing all four of the final four teams from last year should give us a tremendous test and allow our team to be pushed and challenged and grow in a manner that will put us in a position to compete with the best teams in the country."
The Buckeye's will waste no time in getting to the heart of their schedule either. They open their season on the road against South Carolina, who spent most of last season as the nation's second-ranked team. Then, just three days later, Ohio State will host the two-time defending national champion UConn Huskies in their home opener.
Ohio State will also face last year's NCAA tournament runner up Notre Dame in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge December 2nd.
As if the non-conference schedule wasn't difficult enough, the Buckeyes will also play a difficult conference schedule which includes the fourth Final Four team, Maryland, twice.
The schedule will be a test, but Ohio State is fully equipped to handle it. They return every starter this year, including the nation's leading scorer and Freshman of the Year Kelsey Mitchell. More importantly, this year's team will have something last year's team did not: depth. The Buckeyes return four players who missed most or all of last season due to injuries, and will be joined by two incoming freshmen, including McDonald's All-American Kaylan Pugh.
With the combination of young talent and veteran leadership, this looks to be one of the best Buckeye teams in a long time. They certainly look poised to make a deep run in this year's NCAA Tournament, but it all starts with the regular season.
Men's track members claim all-american honors
With a fourth-place finish in the NCAA Championships, the Ohio State men's 4x4 team claimed First Team All-American honors, becoming the first Buckeye 4x4 team since 2001 to earn such honors. The team finished behind LSU, Florida, and Mississippi State with a time of 3:05:53
Men's 4x4 Team
- Antonio Blanks (Junior)
- Champ Page (Junior)
- Davon Anderson (Freshman)
- LaMar Burton (Sophomore)
Junior J.C. Murasky also earned First Team All-American honors with a seventh place finish in the shot put with a throw of 19.61 meters.
As a whole, the Ohio State men's team finished 37th in the championships— which was lower than expected after their jump in the rankings last week.
Baseball buckeyes in the mlb draft
Five Buckeyes were selected in the MLB Draft this past weekend.
- Sophomore pitcher Travis Lakins was selected in the sixth round by the Boston Red Sox
- Senior pitcher Ryan Riga was selected in the 13th round by the Chicago White Sox
- Senior right fielder Pat Porter was selected in the 15th round by the Houston Astros
- 2015 Buckeye signee Ryan Feltner was selected in the 25th round by the Toronto Blue Jays
- Sophomore pitcher Shea Murray was selected in the 37th round by the Texas Rangers
kyle snyder qualifies for u.s. world team
Since his loss in the NCAA Tournament championship match, Kyle Snyder has been on quite a roll. Last month, he won his first U.S. Open Championship and this weekend he earned a spot on the U.S. World Team with a win in the U.S. World Team Trials.
SUPER FROSH @Snyder_man45 makes US WORLD TEAM. Will wrestle in WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS in LAS VEGAS in SEPT! pic.twitter.com/9tufsfHgGa
— Ohio State Wrestling (@wrestlingbucks) June 14, 2015
"The match I lost [in the NCAA finals] hurt a lot, but I consider myself a hard worker and I stuck with the process" said Snyder in a university release.
Former Buckeye Reece Humphrey also qualified for the team. It will be his third appearance on the roster.
The World Championships take place in Las Vegas Sept. 7-12.
2014-15 'Ship Count: 5
- Football
- Wrestling
- Pistol
- Synchronized Swimming
- Rowing
