Red River Rematch Comes To Norman

NORMAN, Okla. -- The Oklahoma volleyball team has built some momentum now it hopes to make the most of its longest home stand of the season. The three match stretch begins with the volleyball version of the Red River Rivalry. The Sooners and the 10th-ranked Longhorns will tussle at the Howard McCasland Field House on Wednesday night at 7 p.m.

Admission to all OU volleyball matches is $5 for adults and $3 for children. The first 250 fans in attendance will receive free OU trucker hats. Saturday also marks Hispanic Heritage Night.

Texas enters the match losers of two of their last three matches. The bad side of that story for Sooner fans is that the two losses are the Longhorns only blemishes this season. Texas was one of six remaining undefeated teams until it ran into the 1-2 punch of Texas A&M and Nebraska. A&M knocked the Horns off in four games at home, while NU needed five games to win in Austin.

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After the consecutive losses, Texas rebounded with a home sweep of No. 18 Kansas State on Saturday. As usual senior All-American Mira Topic spearheaded the UT attack. She recorded her fifth consecutive double-double with 19 kills and 17 digs as the Horns dispensed of the 18th-ranked Wildcats.

Topic is averaging a Big 12 best 5.75 kills per game, which she has improved to 6.18 since the start of conference. She isn't too shabby on defense where she averages 3.46 digs per game and 0.71 blocks per game.

The first meeting of the season between the fierce rivals was one-sided in Texas' favor. OU lost the first two games 11-30 and 17-30 before closing the gap and falling 28-30 in the third and decisive game.

The Sooners will continue their three match home stand with a Saturday tilt against No. 16 Texas A&M. OU will finish the stand with a non-conference match against Texas Christian University on Wednesday, Nov. 3.

The Sooners and Aggies will square off at 7 p.m. Saturday. OU will honor the program's alumni prior to the match, which will also feature a mid-match contest for best Halloween Outfit.

KEY MATCH UP
OU libero Stephanie Tengram
vs.
UT libero Alyson Jennings

Stats
Tengram - 3.42 Digs Per Game
vs.
Jennings - 3.62 Digs Per Game

Breakdown
In the first meeting of the season OU was outdug by Texas, 46-20. The Sooners cannot win if they repeat that performance.

OU's defense starts at the front line with the new middle blocking duo of freshman Anna Stadel and junior Gabriela Tonon, but back row defender Stephanie Tengram's ability to pick up balls will also be vital. Tengram is averaging 3.42 digs per game and has totaled 10 or more in 16 of the last 19 matches.

On the other side of the court, UT's Alyson Jennings is averaging 3.62 digs per game. She was one of two players, both Longhorns, with double-digit digs in the first meeting. If the Sooners can get the ball to the floor before UT steadiest back row defender finds it, they will improve their chances for a major upset.

PEOPLE WATCHING
OU head coach Santiago Restrepo has been out in the community and around campus selling locals on his Oklahoma volleyball team. The marketing has show up in the seats, or at least in the number that are filled. OU has drawn over 500 fans on four occasions this season and is averaging 728 per match. Last season OU averaged 581 fans but only topped 500 on two occasions. One of those matches was a Howard McCasland Field House record of 3,162, which dramatically spiked the average for the 10 match home season.

TIME TO COMPARE
Santiago Restrepo is 19 matches into his debut season with the Oklahoma volleyball team. While he isn't satisfied with the Sooners progress in the win column, the statistics show the team has improved in nearly every aspect. Below is a comparison of the 2003 season stats with OU's numbers so far this season:

	2003	2004	+/-
Kills Per Game	13.53	14.58	+1.05
Hitting Percentage	.172	.209	+.37
Assists Per Game	12.31	13.19	+.87
Aces Per Game	1.47	1.20	-.27
Digs Per Game	13.61	14.36	+.75
Blocks Per Game	2.25	2.67	+.42

The one area the Sooners are down from last year is service aces, but that has been counter acted by reduced service errors and reception errors this season. Below is comparison the per game average for those two areas:

	2003	2004	+/-
Service Errors	10.9	7.8	-3.1
Reception Errors	7.3	5.9	-1.4

COMING OUT PARTY
Freshman setter Julie Chester took over the starting reigns six matches ago with the daunting challenge of Missouri, No. 5 Nebraska and No. 20 Texas A&M staring her squarely in the face. As expected, the young signal caller had some struggles against three of the Big 12's best teams. Against Colorado on Oct. 16, she had a coming out party with career-highs in every category except solo blocks. She was at it again in the sweep of Iowa State, where she had 42 assists in just three games. The stats don't tell the whole story though. Chester ran the offense with a new found speed and precision, which was a major factor in the upset of Colorado. As for Rachel Jackson, who Chester replaced in the starting lineup, she has become a back row defensive substitution for Gabriela Tonon. It is a role that Jackson flourished in since the change (2.45 DPG). It also adds another dimension to the Sooner defense and offense with a second setter in the lineup.

HALL OF FAMER
Oklahoma volleyball head coach Santiago Restrepo was inducted into the 26th edition of the East Stroudsburg University Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday, Oct. 23. Restrepo was awarded with ESU's highest athletics honor for his accomplishments as a volleyball player and coach for the Warriors.

Restrepo was an All-American and four-time All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference player from 1983-86. Following a professional volleyball career, Restrepo returned to East Stroudsburg and compiled a 75-32 record as the head coach of both the men's and women's volleyball teams.

“Its an honor and a privilege,” said Restrepo. “ I have to thank everyone involved in the selection process, which includes professors, administrators and coaches. I also have to thank my old coach, Robert Sweeney. His guidance, support and leadership are the reasons I am being inducted. This award is as much a credit to him, as it is to me.”

The induction ceremony took place during halftime of the homecoming football game and was followed by a banquet. Restrepo was inducted by Sweeney. Restrepo was unable to attend his induction because the Sooners were busy defeating Iowa State in Ames.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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