College Volleyball: ORU Wins, Tulsa Falls

Tulsa Falls To USF

The University of Tulsa volleyball team fell in its American Athletic Conference opener against South Florida, 3-1 (22-25, 25-22, 22-25, 19-25), as Erica Bohannon finished with a match-high 17 kills, while libero Brooke Berryhill tallied 22 digs, Friday night in a back-and-forth battle at the Reynolds Center.

Freshman Audrey Grant matched her career high with 10 kills, while Abigail Cachero earned her first-career start for the Hurricane.

"It was just one of those grind it out type of matches," said head coach Ryan Wills. "Both teams hit for a pretty low percentage. Our defense did a pretty good job, holding them to .132 (hitting percentage) on the night. Audrey Grant came in, as a freshman in her first real time at an outside hitter position, and did a great job."

The first set was controlled by the Hurricane (8-4, 0-1 The American) early on. After going down 1-0, the Hurricane took the lead and ran out to a 15-10 advantage without giving up the lead. The Bulls marched back, as it ran off four straight points, forcing Wills to call a timeout.

After the break, USF (7-6, 1-0 The American) went on an 8-4 run to take its first lead (22-20) since the beginning of the stanza, and force the Hurricane to use its second timeout. The Bulls held on to its lead the rest of the way, as it finished the set on a 3-2 run to take the opening frame. Ashley Hooper ended the set with four kills on five attacks, while Nicole Newton recorded five kills on eight attacks.

The second set began in the Bulls' favor, as it took a quick 4-1 lead, and forced Wills to use an early timeout. Momentum shifted Tulsa's way after the break, as it rallied off an 11-4 run. USF were forced to call a timeout, down 12-8.

The Hurricane did not let off, as it extended its lead to 18-11. After another Bulls timeout, TU managed a 24-19 lead, before USF's Erin Fairs botched an attack, which gave the Hurricane the match-tying set.

TU used that momentum to jump out to an 8-3 in the early going of the third frame. However, like the rest of the match, the trailing team rallied back, this time, to take a 19-15 lead over the Hurricane. Following a TU timeout the Bulls failed to relinquish the lead and went on to take the set, to go up 2-1 in the match. Newton and Grant were the high-kill producers of the set, with four each.

The road team controlled the final frame with just one tie and no lead changes. The Hurricane were as close as 19-21, but the Bulls finished the frame on a 4-0 run to end the match. Bohannon finished the set with six kills.

Both teams were even throughout, as each produced 50 kills on the night.

The Hurricane will now take on UCF this Sunday in the Reynolds Center at 1:30 p.m.

"We have UCF coming in here Sunday," said Wills. "We're excited for the opportunity. It's another great team at the top of our league. We have to come in and get better tomorrow so we're ready for Sunday."

ORU Sweeps South Dakota State

Sara Pope smashed 20 kills as Oral Roberts University swept South Dakota State, 3-0, on Friday night at a packed out Kenneth H. Cooper Aerobics Center. ORU improved to 7-7 (1-0 Summit League) with the record.

THE BASICS

Score: Oral Roberts 3, South Dakota State 0 (25-22, 25-15, 25-22)

Records: South Dakota State – 6-11 (0-1 SL), Oral Roberts – 7-7 (1-0 SL)

Location: Kenneth H. Cooper Aerobics Center – Tulsa, Okla.

TURNING POINT

A Sadie Schaffner kill gave ORU a 10-4 lead in the 1st set and forced an SDSU timeout. The Jacks spent the final two and a half sets trying to reclaim momentum, but ORU ruled throughout.

THE LEADERS

Oral Roberts: Pope's 20-kill performance was her first of the season and her second as a Golden Eagle. It matched her previous ORU best, when she led the Golden Eagles to a win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on October 24, 2013.

South Dakota State: Alanna Pengilly led all players with 17 digs, while Tiara Gibson tallied eight kills.

1ST SET – ORU, 25-22

ORU dictated the terms throughout the set, forcing a second SDSU timeout after a Pope kill at 18-11. Though the Jackrabbits closed the gap to two points, ORU rallied and won the set on another Pope kill.

2ND SET – ORU, 25-15

The 2nd set was the easiest of the night for Oral Roberts, who posted a .367 hitting percentage in the period. Jovana Poljasevic capped the set with a service ace.

3RD SET – ORU, 25-22

The Jackrabbits were reinvigorated out of the locker room and jumped out to a 12-8 lead, forcing an ORU timeout. But the Golden Eagles drew even at 19-all as Pope launched a kill, and the senior from Jenks ended the night with her 20th kill at match point.