The last time it played in Crisler Arena, as opposed to its usual home, Cliff Keen Arena, the Michigan volleyball team did not fare well. Two years ago, the sixth-ranked Wolverines lost to unranked Oregon State in straight sets. The loss snapped their 12-match and 27-set winning streaks.

Following an encouraging win against Michigan State, No. 22 Michigan (8-12 Big Ten, 20-12 overall) entered its matchup against Ohio State at Crisler eager to erase a bad memory and create a new one, hoping to end its regular season with a strong showing.

But despite the electric atmosphere on senior night, the Wolverines were unable to produce a different outcome, and fell to the Buckeyes in four sets (25-20, 25-22, 16-25, 25-20).

“We felt like we had some things we could exploit, but they did a great job,” said Michigan coach Mark Rosen. “They passed the ball well and they were in system all night long. We felt like we were chasing them most of the night. Overall, they executed what they wanted to do better than we did.”

Michigan struggled mightily against Ohio State’s up-tempo offense, which constantly served immediately after the official blew the whistle to start play. The quick-serving Buckeyes clearly frustrated the Wolverines, who failed to maintain a consistent attack and were unable to set up their defense on multiple occasions.

“They run a very fast offense,” said sophomore middle blocker Jennifer Cross. “They made us really uncomfortable and I think that was the major thing. They made us uncomfortable blocking on defense and I don’t think we adjusted fast enough. Towards the end of the game we made changes, but it’s something to learn from that we need to make changes faster in the game.”

Early on, it appeared as if Michigan was going to send its seniors off with a victory in their last match in Ann Arbor. With strong play at the net, the Wolverines built a 12-9 first-set lead. But Ohio State (9-11, 19-14) fought back, using an 8-3 run to take control of the set. With the help of outside hitters Kaitlyn Leary and Mari Hole, the Buckeyes out-killed Michigan 19-12 in the opening set.

Once again the Wolverines found themselves chasing Ohio State in the second-set, as they squandered another early set lead. Trailing 19-13, Michigan went on a 7-1 run sparked by the aggressive play of Cross, who recorded 10 kills on the match, but the Wolverines’ inability to convert scoring opportunities eventually lead to their demise in the set. The Wolverines finished the set with a .044 attack percentage and nine errors.

“When they play that fast, they make you want to speed up,” said senior Libero Sloane Donhoff, who lead the team with 17 digs. “Instead, we should have just tried to slow down the game or get set up quicker.”

Michigan came out in the third set with a renewed sense of urgency and passion. Led by Cross and senior outside hitter Alex Hunt, the Wolverines maintained a big lead throughout the set through aggressive play. The offense scored 19 kills to just three attack errors en route to compiling a .544 attack percentage. Meanwhile, its defense — anchored by Donhoff, who led the team with 17 digs — played with a relentless effort. It appeared as if the Buckeyes were unraveling.

But Michigan was incapable of sustaining its consistent play, wasting another early lead in the fourth set. With Buckeye outside hitter Emily Danks serving late in the set, the Wolverines were plagued by attack errors and miscommunication, dropping the set and the match.

“Danks is a great server and those balls were in our seams,” Donhoff said. “Normally we’re better at communicating about that but when you’re already struggling a little bit, something that goes first is communication. Going into the (NCAA) Tournament, that’s something we need to work on.”

With her team leading 12 kills on the night, Hunt moved into second place on Michigan’s all-time kills list with 1,574 career kills, eclipsing Jennifer Gandolph’s mark.

The Wolverines had plenty of opportunities to attack — freshman setter Lexi Dannemiller handed out 41 assists — but they couldn’t convert as much as they would have liked to. They have now lost 11 of their last 12 matches when converting a lower attack percentage than their opponent.

“All you can do is just look to the future and focus on the (NCAA) Tournament, which is our next big task at hand,” Donhoff said.