ORU Sweeps McNeese Behind Schaffner's Dozen Kills

Freshman Sadie Schaffner smashed 12 kills, leading Oral Roberts University to a 3-0 sweep of McNeese State University on Thursday night. With the win, ORU evens their overall record at 13-13 and improves to 9-6 in Southland Conference play.

The Golden Eagles took the three sets by scores of 25-16, 25-20 and 25-23.

Schaffner's 12 kills came on just 20 attempts; the rookie had just two errors and hit .500 on the night. Tatum Fredeen added nine kills for ORU, who hit .316 as a team.

Defensively, Bruna Silva led the way with 10 digs, while Sheina Fernandes had a team-best five blocks.

The Cowgirls (7-22, 1-14 SLC) hit just .155 on the night. Malina Sanchez collected a team-high eight kills, while Kimberlyn Patterson and Whitney Wllisor finished with 10 digs each.

ORU wrestled away control of the first set midway through the period with a 6-0 run. Schaffner ended the run with a kill, giving the Golden Eagles a 13-10 edge. The freshman again came up huge at set point, as her kill gave the visitors a 25-16 win. ORU hit .379 in the set.

The second set was even at 12-12 before Schaffner kick-started a 7-1 ORU run with yet another kill. Fernandes ended the run with one of her six kills, giving Sheera Sirola's team a 19-13 lead. The Golden Eagles went on to win the set by a count of 25-20.

ORU was in trouble late in the third set, as a service error gave McNeese a 22-20 lead. But Fredeen started a rally with her final kill of the night, winning momentum back for the Golden Eagles. ORU won the next four points and had a match point at 24-22. A Rachel Cagnina kill fought off ORU's first winning chance, but Fredeen and Fernandes combined for a block on the next point, clinching the victory with a 25-23 win.

ORU tallied 10 blocks as a team. In addition to Fernandes leading the way with five blocks, Schaffner tallied four (one solo) and Jessica Pancratz had three (one solo).

ORU is now 3-0 all-time against McNeese, which each of the wins coming in the last two seasons.

The Golden Eagles finish their final regular season road trip of the year on Saturday, Nov. 3, when they take on Lamar. Game time in Beaumont, TX is set for 2 p.m.