BIG TEN VOLLEYBALL MEDIA DAYS

July 29, 2025

Jen Flynn

Olivia Hasbrook

Mia Tuman

Ohio State Buckeyes

Press Conference

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: Fourth media day and it gets better and better, so thank you to the Big Ten. Shout-out to Grace, CJ, and Ashley, who run this event. Obviously the network that hosts us and puts it on at an incredible venue.

Just really excited for the season, excited for these two to be back and take care of our first two contacts. But really excited for 2025 and team 56.

Q. Coach, the end of last season, you guys really started to gain steam at that point. What are some things you want to carry over into this season that you want to see from the getgo and have a stronger start?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: Yeah, I think the work ethic that we had all last fall showed at the very end, and I think this team, those that are returning were hungry for more. The work they put in the spring and what we saw in the camp demos in the summer, it's exciting for what this team could be.

We've added some new faces and really excited for the work they're putting in and the drive that we have right now in Buckeye volleyball.

Q. Jen, some new faces came via the transfer portal and you lost a few faces to the transfer portal. What have you learned about the transfer portal over the last few years?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: It's not going anywhere. It's here to stay. Whether you hate it or you love it it's a necessary evil, but it's part of the world we're in. We lost production, whether it's graduation or transfers. That's no secret.

But I'm excited for the pieces that we've added. We have a transfer from Memphis in Hannah Jones who had a breakout spring. We've added some really experienced and mature players and fifth-year seniors.

It's not something you want to rely on. I think some programs do. I still really truly believe in the development of athletes, especially high school athletes coming through our program. We're excited about the loyal players that are here with me and excited to be Buckeyes, and it's just something you have to figure out as you move forward.

We figured it out, and I'm excited for what this means for this team.

Q. Mia, Coach was just naming off a couple new players and new arms. Obviously Rylee Rader and Emily Londot you set to many, many times. What has it been like the last couple weeks of the summer and spring to build those new connections and trying to develop and feel confidence in those arms?

MIA TUMAN: Yeah, I think it's just been a really cool opportunity because, as you said, you rely a lot on those big hitters, but we have so many great hitters, and now they really get a chance to step up, and they all have.

I have a ton of options like I had before, but once again, and I'm very excited to just keep exploring those connections and make them even stronger.

Q. Olivia, we've seen Coach talk about -- maybe the phrase I see the most is just energy. Describe for us your game, what you try to bring to the court every single time at your position that you feel like I have to be this person each time I go out, this is what wee dines me?

OLIVIA HASBROOK: I think they talk to me a lot about just controlling what I can control and then being there for my teammates. And I think for my energy, I just try to be there and celebrate my teammates as much as I can, celebrate the little things, celebrate the things that make the game go around.

I think that and just not thinking too much, just playing. I have always had fire in my play, so I think just being me who I am and not trying to change just because I'm in a different place at a different level.

Q. Coach, talking about Mia, someone who is entering another year of being a starter, where are those jumps or the difference when you take the reigns from an early time in your college career and that growth and what it's been like for her in that trajectory and looking at her 2025?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: Yeah, I think Mia's work ethic stands out, first and foremost. But a maturity that she's gaining each year, the experience, the poise, competitive fire. All those things just continue to grow, and I'm excited that she's a leader for this program. They both are. And excited that her junior year is going to be her best year.

Q. Mia, what is that kind of journey like when you take the reigns very early on and now -- maybe it's just having that footing underneath you. How do you approach 2025?

MIA TUMAN: Yeah, I think it's been really cool to just learn every single year and continue to do that.

I was really lucky to be -- I'm really lucky to be at a program where I could have had the opportunity to be a leader the moment I got here, and they gave me a lot of room to do that and give me voice.

I just hope that I can continue to be a great teammate and be a great leader to the new people that we have on our team.

But yeah, I'm just excited. I'm excited to keep learning and to just keep growing.

Q. Jen, one of the other big surprises in the off-season was Kirsten Bernthal Booth stepped down. How surprised were you with that news and how did that change your life?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: Yeah, I was really surprised by the news. I think most people -- I obviously reached out to her, and the second thought was like, oh, no, it's starting early.

So it just sped up the presidency by six months, and I went to my first board meeting in May and I was really energized by the people in the room, and she was there as well. She's going to be a resource, somebody I'll reach out to, and vice versa.

She's become a good friend. But what does that mean? It means I've got to figure out what this job means a little bit quicker. But I think being in that role in the current landscape is a really important one, to have the right voice and continue to do things the right way and advocate for our sport at all levels.

Yeah, I wouldn't say it's daunting, it's just a little bit unknown and we're figuring it out, but having the support of Jamie and his staff as I learn into this job -- I wouldn't say lean into, but I learn into it. But I'm excited to serve in that capacity.

Q. You mentioned Jamie. He coached Sydney Wyman before in the first part of her career. Did you learn anything about her from him?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: I did not. Yeah, kept it between Sydney and I.

Q. Did you coach Mia or target her at all when she was a little kid?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: A target?

Q. You probably said she's a prospect or whatever.

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: Yeah, absolutely. I've known Mia since she was 10, so being the club director at Pittsburgh Elite and seeing her growth and her trajectory and her path, I felt a little bit bad leaving her club team when I was the head coach and got the job at Ohio State.

But, you know I think her leadership and her -- obviously her talent and where I thought she could go would do well, serve us well. So it was just trying to make sure she wasn't wearing the wrong colors and getting her in the scarlet and the gray, so that was a tough task at first. But I think we were destined to be together, so I'm excited that she's here.

MIA TUMAN: I mean, she nailed it, yeah. She definitely knew me well, knew how to recruit me, had all the tricks that would lure me. But it was very easy, honestly. When I got on campus and was around the team and around the coaches it was a very easy decision from there. Not at first because of my family, but when I really realized, it was easy.

Q. Mia and Olivia, you had match point against into Penn State; didn't (indiscernible.) But you saw what they did later on in the season. What do you take from that match and carry into the possibilities for this year?

MIA TUMAN: Yeah, I think it just reinforced the idea that we can compete with anybody. We just have a lot of fight left in us, and just makes us really hungry for this year. I think we have a lot to show, but it's really just for ourselves, and we want to display all that we have, and I'm just excited for another opportunity to do that this year.

OLIVIA HASBROOK: That's exactly what I was going to say. Like you're so close, and this year is going to be the year that we're not close, we do it.

Q. Mia, talk about setting. You guys on the court, back up the team, you have to make split decisions in milliseconds. How do you process that and know where you're going with the ball?

MIA TUMAN: Yeah, I think it's just something that comes with time. I obviously still am learning, and I wouldn't say I'm even close to where I would like to be there, but I think it's just helpful when you have so many great options and you've got someone giving you easy balls, putting them right on the money for you.

I think it kind of just becomes habit after a while, and I have coaches who do a great job of training us to read the block on the other side and just kind of get a sense of what the right thing to do would be.

It can be a little stressful, but I think just trusting in my hitters gives me all the confidence.

Q. You added Fiona Fonoti, and then also a former head coach now as an assistant. What did those two mean to your program and why did you put them on the staff?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: First and foremost, they're great humans. I think every day you're spending time with them, so making sure they fit the culture and what you're about and who you're about. That was the number one goal.

Then it's experience and knowledge. What I didn't know, I had an idea, is how much joy they bring to the job, and they understand the workload, they understand the responsibilities, and they love it. Showing up every day with them has just been incredible.

I would say the vibe in the gym this year, this spring, has been one of the best, and off-season is a little bit easier. We'll see what happens in the fall. But I don't see it changing. They're just incredible humans that love the job, love the sport and love giving back, so they were a great fit.

Q. How do you see things changing?

MIA TUMAN: Yeah, I agree. I think it was something that we honestly at first were a little nervous with all the change, but they stepped right in and there was no delay, and they just picked up right where we needed them to and had no hesitation with putting us in line and getting on us, which is what we wanted and what we needed.

Actually before they came, we were able to kind of talk with Skylar a little bit and just say this is what we need, and he's like, that's what I'm going to bring. It's been amazing. He's followed through on everything. Both of them have.

OLIVIA HASBROOK: I agree. I think they're both full of so much fire and laughter and fun, and I think even through the hard stuff because they push us and they know the grind, but I think they find -- they are always finding ways to make everything fun and enjoyable and find that joy within the games that we want to continue to show up for one another.

I love both the new coaches. I think they have helped me grow exponentially as a player and as a person. I think they're the perfect fit for us.

Q. You have a sarcasm gap with Fawcett leaving. Of your three incoming freshmen, any of them starters, impact, any of the above?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: Yeah, I think that Na'Vea had a great spring. She graduated early and was with us training in the spring. In terms of production, I see her being on the court at some point. She can play both right and left, primarily on the left. She's a good ball handler. She could have an impact.

Mina, who joined us in June; just hoping she got on that flight coming over from Turkey. It's hard being away from home, regardless of -- I was three hours from home -- six hours, homesick, and you have a player come from Turkey and it's the first international player that I've recruited.

I think her journey over the summer has its ups and downs, but man, can she play volleyball. I think as a lefty opposite, that's a potential. But we won't know until we're in the gym together and see how it all clicks. They could give you some inside information but they're told not to.

I'm just kidding.

But yeah, I'm excited to see what those three brings. I think Mia Stahler pushes other defense quite a bit, so she could see some time. It's a little bit wide open right now and that's not a bad thing because we have a lot of talent in our gym.

Q. To follow up on what you were just saying, you said first international player you've recruited. What was that process like and the connection there that led to her coming to Ohio State?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: I'd like to say it's so complicated, but it was not that complicated because Michelle Bartsch played with Mina's sister, Zehra, and so that connection was very deep and very strong, and it was about trust.

So that family trusted Michelle; obviously Michelle trusts me. It was just -- it was kind of meant to be. So we're excited to have Mina in our program and have that trust from her and her family.

Q. Looking also at the Big Ten on a micro level, too, where you think about it with Rylee and Emily, there's a lot of seniors and fifth years that are big names no longer in the conference this year. How do you look overall? Of course incredibly robust, but maybe a lot of unfamiliarity, there's new coaches and different people in different places?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: Yeah, I think it's a lot of new. I think when they were dressed up, I was like, man, I wouldn't recognize some of these. I'd have to look at the rosters and see who's here, but that's part of this. That's what it's supposed to be, the turnover and the new and the development.

I think this is going to be an exciting year. You have the top dogs that everybody is going after, but I think there's going to be a lot of teams that surprise people with the new, so we're going to be one of them.

Q. There's now a Mia, Mia, and Mina in your core. How do you handle that?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: That's a great question.

MIA TUMAN: You know what, we are working on that right now. Just trying to come up with some nicknames, but that might take some time. A little bit of confusion in the gym when we're yelling Mia, Mina, whatever. Yeah, it's been funny.

OLIVIA HASBROOK: I said Mina -- I call Mina Mia all the time because we'll be in service game and it'll be Mia on this side, Mina right here, and then Mia setting, so that gets confusing sometimes. But I've got to find some nicknames --

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: I think Fiona is going to come up with --

Q. With the House settlement finalized, how has that changed things? There's a lot of mouths to feed at Ohio State, and how did you make the case to the administration for volleyball to be involved in revenue sharing?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: I think he made the case. He was one of the first or only ADs that made it public that volleyball will be a revenue share sport at Ohio State.

We're one of four out of 36 sports, and I think that says a lot for the support of our administration to give it to us, to compete obviously in the Big Ten but also nationally.

We're very fortunate and grateful, and we're going to be able to use it.

Q. Is there pressure being one of four, that you have to produce -- or is that no pressure at all?

JEN FLYNN OLDENBURG: There's always pressure. If you don't have money, there's pressure. If there's money, there's pressure. But that's part of being at Ohio State. All of our programs are elite and we continue to strive to be. Yeah, maybe there's some pressure but I don't want to look at it that way. I think there's opportunity.