College notes: Amherst grad Audrey McConihe helps Cleveland State volleyball end its postseason drought

Audrey McConihe was not about to go her entire college career without experiencing postseason volleyball. Cleveland State has not been to the Horizon League Tournament since 2018, the year before McConihe joined the program after a standout career with Amherst. And while she's accomplished a lot as a four-year starter, she and her five fellow seniors wanted to get the program back to the postseason. The Vikings had won three straight regular-season and tournament championships from 2015-17. And while this season's Vikings won't be raising the regular-season banner, they're back in the conference tournament and hoping to make some noise. "We're taking a lot of pride in ending the drought," McConihe said. "We took the time, all six seniors, we sat down and asked what we needed to do to change this. We went to the drawing board, created a new culture and really stuck to that this whole season. From our spring season to our preseason to where we are now, we got our whole team to buy into it and now we've ended the drought. We're super proud." Cleveland State takes a 13-16 record and the No. 4 seed into the tournament and will face No. 5 Milwaukee on Friday at Wright State. The winner of the three-day event will earn the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Tournament. McConihe leads the Vikings with 379 digs in 102 sets. She's third on the team with 426 serve receptions and fourth with 24 aces. She recorded her 1,000th career dig Sept. 23 against Wright State. Her 1,160 digs rank among the top 10 in program history. "I'm ecstatic," said McConihe, who plans to attend law school next year. "Especially for my class and the juniors because we kind of got the biggest burden of COVID. We lost a lot of time with developing. So for us to overcome that obstacle, put in the extra work over the summer and throughout the preseason to get to where we are now, it's just so rewarding to see everyone put in all the extra time to get to where we are now." McConihe isn't the only player from the area making a mark. Madison Olinger, a sophomore from Avon Lake, is second in blocks with 114, while also adding 134 kills. She's become a key part of the team's defense after missing her freshman season when she suffered a stress fracture in her right shin about three weeks into preseason. While Olinger couldn't travel with the team, she took advantage of the home games. "I was still trying to get reps hitting off of the box," Olinger said. "I'd watch my other middles, give feedback and learn from them blocking on the court. I found while I was injured that there's a lot that you can do mentally that can get you ready and improve your game. I think it showed during spring season when I was able to play again." Freshman Laken Voss, who played with McConihe for one season at Amherst, is already making an impact. She leads the team with 359 kills, is second in aces with 27 and fifth in blocks with 53. "My teammates' support throughout this year has been great," Voss said. "Everyone is so encouraging. That really helps a lot because with their support I gain confidence. The speed of the game has increased and the other team's defense is a lot better compared to high school. It's a lot harder to score on college teams, but I'm finding the tricks and the ways to do so." Bump, set spike Graduate student Erin Gardner (Avon) is once again the anchor behind Kent State's defense. She leads the team with 346 digs through 89 sets. She also has a 92 percent success rate on serve reception while leading the team with 400 attempts. She's third on the team with 18 aces. Alex Laboy (Avon) has 62 digs in 42 sets in her junior season for Bowling Green with a 95.5 success rate on serve reception. Freshman Grace Van Niel (Amherst) has made the most of her consistent playing time with Ursuline, ranking second with 37 blocks in 67 sets. Ellie Schenk (Amherst) is third on Notre Dame College with 261 digs and has a 91.1 percent serve-reception success rate on 416 attempts. The junior also is fifth with 19 aces in 117 sets. Mercyhurst graduate student Zoe Gadomski (Avon) leads the team with 302 digs in 89 sets. She's also third with 24 aces and holds a 90.9 percent serve-reception success rate. Lauren Gardner (St. Joseph Academy/Avon) was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Libero of the Year. The Baldwin Wallace sophomore appeared in 22 matches and averaged 5.86 digs in 77 sets, 451 total. She added 73 assists and 25 aces. Sophomore Alexis Meyer (Avon Lake) was an honorable mention All-OAC selection after recording 172 kills with Mount Union. Camryn Colahan (Vermilion) saw action in 48 sets and recorded 72 digs for Wittenberg, the North Coast Athletic Conference regular-season and tournament champions. The No. 9-ranked Tigers lost to No. 20 Hope in the opening round of the Division III NCAA Tournament. Kickin' it Both Ohio State soccer programs are receiving contributions from area athletes. On the men's side, freshman Luciano Pechota (St. Ignatius/Avon) played in 16 games and had two goals and three assists. Redshirt sophomore Peter Van Euwen (St. Ignatius/Avon Lake) also served as the team's backup goalkeeper, but did not see any playing time.Junior Christin Baumbick (Magnificat/Avon Lake) played 17 games at midfield for the women's team, scoring her only goal in a 6-1 win against Illinois on Oct. 16. Like Van Euwen, Zach Glesius (Avon Lake) did not see playing time, spending his freshman season serving as one of Virginia Tech's reserve goalkeepers. Senior defender Lauren Milner (North Ridgeville) played in 11 games with six starts for Bowling Green. The Falcons also received contributions from freshman Abby Koly (Avon), who played in 17 matches and scored her first collegiate goal against Eastern Michigan on Oct. 23. Tori Copfer (Avon Lake) played in 15 games at defense in her sophomore season for Kent State, averaging nearly 25 minutes per game. She attempted three shots, two on goal. Freshman goalkeeper Liv Fain (Amherst) made 11 starts for Cleveland State, making 35 saves with 12 goals allowed. Merrick Mihalek (Amherst) played in 17 gamees with 16 starts, scoring one goal on 12 shots and notching four assists during her sophomore season with Ashland. Senior Ryan Kunkle (Elyria Catholic) scored one goal with four assists in her first season with Tiffin after transferring from St. Bonaventure. Freshman Andrea Parker (Avon Lake) made 13 appearances and 11 starts in goal, making 76 saves, allowing 25 goals and posting a 7-5-1 record. Lauren Alley (Wellington) started 14 games with a goal and an assist on 20 shots in her sophomore year for Otterbein. Sophomore Jillian Laposky (Wellington) started all 11 games with one goal on 11 shots for Muskingum. For additions to the college notebook, contact Chris Sweeney at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on Twitter.