Saturday, November 4
Norman, Okla.
8:00 p.m.
West Virginia University
15-10, 3-8Big 12
2
at
3
Oklahoma
6-18, 3-8Big 12
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Virginia | 25 | 23 | 18 | 25 | 10 | 2 |
| Oklahoma | 21 | 25 | 25 | 16 | 15 | 3 |
Photo by: Steven Prunty
WVU Drops a Five-Set Thriller in Norman
November 04, 2017 11:05 PM | Volleyball
NORMAN, Okla. – Despite hitting .214 in the match, the West Virginia University volleyball team dropped a five-set thriller to Oklahoma on Saturday evening inside McCasland FieldHouse in Norman, Oklahoma. The Mountaineers (15-10, 3-8) fell to the Sooners (6-18, 3-8) in set scores of 25-21, 23-25, 18-25, 25-16 and 10-15.
Four Mountaineers finished the match with double-digit kills, as sophomore outside hitter Payton Caffrey led the offense with 13. Senior outside hitter Morgan Montgomery and freshman middle blocker Briana Lynch each added 11 kills, while sophomore right side hitter Natania Levak rounded out the Mountaineers in double figures with 10.
Sophomore setter Erin Slinde assisted on 39 of West Virginia's 46 kills, while senior libero Gianna Gotterba led the floor defensively with a team-high 20 digs.
Of note, the Mountaineers notched six service aces on the night and totaled 13.5 team blocks.
West Virginia hit. 237 in the first set, as a Montgomery kill started a 7-0 run for the Mountaineers. Gotterba strung together a pair of service aces, as the Mountaineers capitalized on four Sooner miscues to take a 13-9 advantage. However, Oklahoma scored on three straight kills to cut its deficit to two, down 16-14. West Virginia then answered with a three-point scoring streak of its own, pushing its lead to five, 19-14. Levak later put one through the pins, but the Sooners continued to hang in there, scoring on back-to-back kills and a service ace to cut their deficit to two once again, 23-21. A Sooner attacking error eventually brought the Mountaineers to set point, as freshman defensive specialist Lindsay Proctor's service ace, her second of the night, handed West Virginia the 25-21 victory and a 1-0 lead in the match.
West Virginia jumped out to an early 5-1 lead in set two, but was unable to maintain its momentum, as Oklahoma claimed the 25-23 victory. A kill from senior middle blocker Mia Swanegan tied the match at 10-all, as the Mountaineers went on a 6-0 scoring run to take a 15-10 advantage, forcing the Sooners into a timeout. Oklahoma then notched back-to-back points out of the stoppage and later scored five in a row to claim a 22-20 lead over West Virginia. Levak found the court to bring the Mountaineers within one, at 22-21. However, Oklahoma claimed the momentum and took three of the last four points in the set to even the match at 1-1.
Oklahoma quickly took a 9-2 lead, following a 6-0 run in the third set. The Mountaineers chipped away at the lead, coming within five at 11-6 on a kill from Lynch. However, the Sooners later put four in a row on the scoreboard, notching two kills and a service ace, for a 20-9 lead. WVU then went on a 3-0 scoring streak of its own to cut its deficit to seven, down 22-15. Oklahoma used a timeout following West Virginia's run, but the Mountaineers couldn't rally from behind and dropped the set, 25-18.
Looking to even the score of the match, West Virginia used a trio of scoring runs in set four to force a fifth set for the fourth time this season. Back-to-back Mountaineer kills and two Sooner attacking errors put the Mountaineers on top 9-5. The team's then traded points before a pair of 3-0 WVU scoring streaks put West Virginia ahead 17-9. Oklahoma then cut its deficit to eight at 20-12, but the Mountaineers took three in a row once again to go ahead 23-13. An Oklahoma service error brought West Virginia to set point, as Montgomery threw down a kill for the 25-16 win.
West Virginia surrendered six straight points to start the fifth set, eventually falling to Oklahoma by a score of 15-10 in the final set. Of note, Madison Drescher led the Sooners with 17 kills.
Looking ahead, the Mountaineers will return to the WVU Coliseum for a three-match homestand starting with No. 19 Iowa State on Wednesday, Nov. 8. Wednesday's contest is Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night, as all members are admitted free with a valid I.D.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUVolleyball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Four Mountaineers finished the match with double-digit kills, as sophomore outside hitter Payton Caffrey led the offense with 13. Senior outside hitter Morgan Montgomery and freshman middle blocker Briana Lynch each added 11 kills, while sophomore right side hitter Natania Levak rounded out the Mountaineers in double figures with 10.
Sophomore setter Erin Slinde assisted on 39 of West Virginia's 46 kills, while senior libero Gianna Gotterba led the floor defensively with a team-high 20 digs.
Of note, the Mountaineers notched six service aces on the night and totaled 13.5 team blocks.
West Virginia hit. 237 in the first set, as a Montgomery kill started a 7-0 run for the Mountaineers. Gotterba strung together a pair of service aces, as the Mountaineers capitalized on four Sooner miscues to take a 13-9 advantage. However, Oklahoma scored on three straight kills to cut its deficit to two, down 16-14. West Virginia then answered with a three-point scoring streak of its own, pushing its lead to five, 19-14. Levak later put one through the pins, but the Sooners continued to hang in there, scoring on back-to-back kills and a service ace to cut their deficit to two once again, 23-21. A Sooner attacking error eventually brought the Mountaineers to set point, as freshman defensive specialist Lindsay Proctor's service ace, her second of the night, handed West Virginia the 25-21 victory and a 1-0 lead in the match.
West Virginia jumped out to an early 5-1 lead in set two, but was unable to maintain its momentum, as Oklahoma claimed the 25-23 victory. A kill from senior middle blocker Mia Swanegan tied the match at 10-all, as the Mountaineers went on a 6-0 scoring run to take a 15-10 advantage, forcing the Sooners into a timeout. Oklahoma then notched back-to-back points out of the stoppage and later scored five in a row to claim a 22-20 lead over West Virginia. Levak found the court to bring the Mountaineers within one, at 22-21. However, Oklahoma claimed the momentum and took three of the last four points in the set to even the match at 1-1.
Oklahoma quickly took a 9-2 lead, following a 6-0 run in the third set. The Mountaineers chipped away at the lead, coming within five at 11-6 on a kill from Lynch. However, the Sooners later put four in a row on the scoreboard, notching two kills and a service ace, for a 20-9 lead. WVU then went on a 3-0 scoring streak of its own to cut its deficit to seven, down 22-15. Oklahoma used a timeout following West Virginia's run, but the Mountaineers couldn't rally from behind and dropped the set, 25-18.
Looking to even the score of the match, West Virginia used a trio of scoring runs in set four to force a fifth set for the fourth time this season. Back-to-back Mountaineer kills and two Sooner attacking errors put the Mountaineers on top 9-5. The team's then traded points before a pair of 3-0 WVU scoring streaks put West Virginia ahead 17-9. Oklahoma then cut its deficit to eight at 20-12, but the Mountaineers took three in a row once again to go ahead 23-13. An Oklahoma service error brought West Virginia to set point, as Montgomery threw down a kill for the 25-16 win.
West Virginia surrendered six straight points to start the fifth set, eventually falling to Oklahoma by a score of 15-10 in the final set. Of note, Madison Drescher led the Sooners with 17 kills.
Looking ahead, the Mountaineers will return to the WVU Coliseum for a three-match homestand starting with No. 19 Iowa State on Wednesday, Nov. 8. Wednesday's contest is Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night, as all members are admitted free with a valid I.D.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUVolleyball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Team Stats
WVU
OU
Kills
56
62
Errors
22
32
Attempts
159
163
Hitting %
.214
.184
Points
75.5
73.0
Assists
53
59
Aces
6
6
Blocks
13.5
5.0
Game Leaders
Kills
13
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
11
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
10
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
L
/ Volleyball
RS
/ Volleyball
MB
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
DS
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB
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