No. 24 OU Volleyball Splits On Saturday

The Sooners recorded a 3-0 sweep of Georgia Tech at the Doubletree Invitational at SMU but fell to the Mustangs in the nightcap 3-2.<br/>

Saturday, September 6th 2014, 7:36 pm

By: News 9


Five players contributed seven kills or more as a balanced attacked led the way for the No. 24 University of Oklahoma volleyball team over Georgia Tech at the Doubletree Invitational, Saturday morning. The Sooners improved to 4-1 on the season with their second straight sweep and third of the season, while the Yellow Jackets dropped to 2-3.

The straight sets victory, which was the first-ever match-up between the two programs, came by way of 25-18, 25-18, 25-23.

Junior outside hitter Kierra Holst and redshirt-sophomore outside hitter Madison Ward tied for the team lead with nine kills. Holst added three service aces and Ward picked up nine digs.

Three Sooners tallied seven kills, including sophomore outside hitter Kimmy Gardiner, who notched a team-high 10 kills. Freshman middle blocker Marion Hazelwood recorded a team-high five blocks to go with seven kills, while sophomore middle blocker Micaela Spann had four blocks with seven kills.

Junior setter Julia Doyle dished out 33 assists, and picked up seven digs and four blocks. Junior libero Taylor Migliazzo finished third on the day for Oklahoma with eight digs.

For the match, the Sooners hit .260 and held the Yellow Jackets to .135.

Georgia Tech was led by Teegan Van Gunst and Courtney Felinski with nine kills, apiece. Rebecca Martin collected 23 assists and London Ackermann led the squad with eight digs.

Sooners Unable to Put Away Mustangs

The No. 24 University of Oklahoma volleyball team let a two-set lead slip away in a 3-2 loss to host SMU at the finale of the Doubletree Invitational, Saturday night. The loss dropped the Sooners to 4-2, while the Mustangs improved to 5-1.

Oklahoma cruised through the first two sets by scores of 25-16 and 25-15 and reached match-point in the third. Sophomore outside hitter Kimmy Gardiner registered a kill to make it a 24-22 OU advantage before SMU ran off four straight points, including two kills by Abbey Bybel, to take the set 26-24. The Mustangs won the fourth and fifth by scores of 25-23 and 16-14.

Gardiner led the Sooner attack with a season-high 21 kills on a .405 attack rate. SMU's Carolina Young led all players with 23 kills to go with 10 digs. Bybel added 15 kills and Cailin Bula chipped in with 14.

Four other players ended the match with double-digit kill totals for Oklahoma. Freshman middle blocker Marion Hazelwood hit a match-high .522 with 13 kills. Junior outside hitter Kierra Holst recorded 11, while sophomores Micaela Spann and Madison Ward each had 10.

Ward notched her second double-double of the season in a 15-dig effort. Spann contributed to the defensive effort with seven blocks, while Hazelwood added five.

Junior setter Julia Doyle matched a career-high with 53 assists and added eight digs and four blocks. Mustang setter Avery Acker topped Doyle's effort with a 55-assist night to go with 16 digs.

OU junior libero Taylor Migliazzo and SMU's Morgan Heise tied for the match-lead in digs at 18.

The Sooners are back in action on Wednesday, Sept. 10 for its home opener at McCasland Field House at 7 p.m. It marks the first of four home matches in four days as Oklahoma hosts its annual NIKE Invitational.

logo

Get The Daily Update!

Be among the first to get breaking news, weather, and general news updates from News on 6 delivered right to your inbox!

More Like This

September 6th, 2014

March 14th, 2024

December 4th, 2023

September 25th, 2023

Top Headlines

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024