Volleyball Spiked By Kansas State :: Oklahoma loses in three games, 30-20, 30-20, 30-19.

	">Printer-Friendly Format ">E-mail this article Senior outside hitter Megan O'Connell nearly had a double-double with 14 kills and nine digs.

Volleyball Spiked By Kansas State

Oklahoma loses in three games, 30-20, 30-20, 30-19.

Oct. 9, 2002

Final Stats

NORMAN, Okla. - Kansas State played a very efficient, error free game and the Oklahoma volleyball team was inconsistent. The result was a three game sweep by KSU, 30-20, 30-20, 30-19, inside the Howard McCasland Field House Wednesday night, which leaves the Sooners 4-11 overall and 2-5 in Big 12 matches. Kansas State improved to 8-6 overall and 4-2 in the Big 12.

"Consistency is the name of the game for us," said OU Head Coach Kalani Mahi. "Kansas State made very few errors and we struggled in the middle of every game with our passing and serving. Kansas State tries to force their opponents into errors and tonight they were successful."

Senior outside hitter Megan O'Connell had one of the best nights of her OU career, missing a double-double by one dig. She pounded out 14 kills, hit .367 (14K-3E-30TA) and collected nine digs. Junior Christina Barlow was on fire to begin the match as she put away her first three balls for kills. Barlow finished the night with nine kills and four digs.

"I thought our left side was excellent tonight," said Mahi. "O'Connell and Barlow got some great swings in and were effective despite the fact that KSU ran three blockers at them every time."

Sophomore outside hitter Candice Woods, fourth in Big 12 play with a .355 hitting percentage, was unusually wild tonight. Woods did collect nine kills but only hit .109 (9-6-29). Senior setter Jessica Barney had 15 assists in game one and 34 for the match. Senior libero Denise Griffin also dug 15 balls.

"Oklahoma is a much improved team," said KSU Head Coach Suzie Fritz. "We really had to prepare for them tonight and I thought they played well."

Each of the three games were close until the midway point, when KSU pulled ahead for good. Leading the Wildcats was middle blocker Lauren Goehring who had 11 kills, one error and a .476 (11-1-21) hitting percentage. Outside hitter Cari Jensen also recorded 10 kills and libero Laura Downey-Wallace had 15 digs.

"Kansas State didn't make mistakes and had excellent ball control tonight," said OU freshman Tara Birkinbine. "The errors we commit correlate to our mental focus. We understand our problem, it is something we have to solve as a team."

Oklahoma continues Big 12 play this weekend, when the Sooners face No. 23 Missouri Sat., Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. inside the Hearnes Center. OU returns home Wednesday, Oct. 16 to face the fifth ranked and defending Big 12 champion Nebraska at 7 p.m. The first 100 fans in attendance to the Nebraska match will receive free OU rally rags. Admission is $5 for adults and $2 for children. OU students with valid student I.D's receive free admission.

The Oct. 16 match against Nebraska will be broadcast live through SoonerSports.com. To view the live video feed, simply click on the "Streaming Match Feed" button on the right side of the volleyball home page. For more information on OU volleyball visit www.soonersports.com. -OU-

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Volleyball Spiked By Kansas State :: Oklahoma loses in three games, 30-20, 30-20, 30-19.

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