Completed Event: Volleyball at Texas on October 19, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 3
Final
Volleyball
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at Texas
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University of Oklahoma Athletics
OU Faces KSU at 1 p.m. Saturday
November 10, 2006 | Volleyball
NORMAN, Okla. - Already owning its best league record since the inception of the Big 12 Conference, the No. 15 Oklahoma volleyball team will defend its seven-match home winning streak against the Kansas State Wildcats this Saturday at 1 p.m. inside the Field House.
The afternoon match will provide a great opportunity for fans to catch a glimpse of OU's record-breaking season before heading to the OU/Texas Tech football game Saturday night.
PROMOTIONS
Saturday marks Fan Appreciation Day and the OU athletic department has decided to honor the fans and the volleyball team by allowing free admission to OU's match against Kansas State. Additionally, the first 250 fans through the door will receive a fan banner. Doors open at 12 p.m.
LIVE STATS
As usual live stats of the entire match will be available for viewing at SoonerSports.com. Additionally, a live broadcast of the match will be available for all O-Zone viewers.
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THE MATCH UP
The Kansas State Wildcats opened the season ranked No. 25 in the CSTV/AVCA poll and went on a seven-match winning streak during the non-conference portion of the schedule including a win over then-No. 23 Notre Dame. However, the Wildcats have struggled since the start of Big 12 play, winning only two matches in the conference this season.
Kansas State is coming off a key win against Baylor where it dominated the Bears, 3-0 (30-24, 30-20, 30-23) this past Wednesday at home to snap a five-match losing streak.
KSU, originally picked to finish fourth in the conference, remains in last place in the league with a 2-14 Big 12 mark. Ironically, Oklahoma was picked to finish 10th in the Big 12 preseason poll but has surged near the top of the standings with a current 12-3 mark in Big 12 play.
The Sooners currently sit in third place in the Big 12 standings, one game behind second-place Texas. The Longhorns own a 13-3 league mark, but only have four conference matches remaining while the Sooners have five.
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SCOUTING KANSAS STATE
Statistically, both teams look evenly matched with Oklahoma holding a slightly smaller advantage in the offensive categories. Sandy Werner and Megan Kroeker have been the offensive threats for the Wildcats this season as Werner is leading the team with 3.41 KPG while Kroeker follows with 2.72 KPG. In the earlier meeting against the Sooners, Kroeker was successful with 17 kills on a match-high .548 hitting percentage against the Sooners while Werner was held to only four kills.
Defensively, both teams are very similar as Kansas State averages 3.01 blocks per game to OU's 3.02 while the Wildcats collect 15.64 digs per game compared to OU's 15.03. Kroeker leads the defense with 1.42 blocks per game.
SERIES RECORDS
OU leads the all-time series against Kansas State 41-23-1, but the Wildcats have won 14 of the last 15. The Sooners topped Kansas State, 3-2, in Manhattan earlier this season, snapping a 14-match losing streak to KSU. OU will be searching for its first win over KSU in Norman since Oct. 31, 1998. In matches played in Norman, OU leads the series 18-11.
LAST TIME THEY MET
The Sooners used a come-from-behind victory to snap a 14-match losing streak to Kansas State earlier this season in Manhattan, Kan. Freshman Bridget Laplante came up huge for the Sooners in the match as she recorded a season-high 23 kills on a .319 hitting percentage. Senior Joanna Schmitt notched a double-double with 19 kills and 15 assists while senior Laura Tomes was impressive defensively as she recorded seven block assists against the Wildcats.
UP NEXT: NO. 25 MISSOURI
The Sooners hit the road for a top-25 showdown as Oklahoma will take on No. 25 Missouri next Wednesday, Nov. 15 at 6:30 p.m. in Columbia. The Tigers will be OU's seventh ranked opponent of the season. OU and Mizzou met in Norman earlier this season with OU taking the sweep over then-No.12 Missouri. Following their road trip, the Sooners will host another two-match home stand with Colorado (Nov. 18) and Iowa State (Nov. 21).
TEXAS TECH IN REVIEW
For the second straight match against Texas Tech this season, Oklahoma used a rally to beat the Red Raiders. The Sooners trailed in all four games, but rallied back from a 1-0 deficit after game one to top Texas Tech, 3-1 (27-30, 30-28, 30-22, 30-28 this past Wednesday. With five players recording double-digit kills, senior Joanna Schmitt headlined the match with her 14th double-double of the season (16 kills, 15 digs). Sarah Weiland added 14 kills on a .417 hitting percentage and freshman Bridget Laplante pounded 12 kills in the Sooner victory.
KEEP MOVING UP
Ranked for the first time in 18 years, the Oklahoma volleyball squad continues to climb up the polls as it received a No. 15 ranking in the latest CSTV/AVCA Division I Top 25 Coaches Poll released Nov. 6. This season marks the first time the OU volleyball program has been ranked since 1988, when it finished with a 23-9 overall mark and 8-4 record in Big Eight play. Prior to this season's ranking, 1988 marked the only season in the 32-year history of the OU volleyball program that it was ranked in the top 25 poll. Oklahoma finished the 1988 ranked No. 13, its highest ranking ever.
SOONERS ON PACE FOR BEST TURN AROUND EVER
The Sooner volleyball program has undergone a complete turnaround from the 2005 season. OU finished the season with a 7-22 overall mark and 2-18 record in Big 12 play. However, the Sooners have done a complete reversal in 2006 and own a 21-5 record and 12-3 mark in the conference with five matches remaining. The Sooners are on pace to have the best one-year turnaround in Big 12 history. Below is a look at the best one-year improvements in the conference:
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*Sooners still have five conference matches remaining
BEST MARK IN OU BIG 12 HISTORY
With a 21-5 overall record and the first half of the Big 12 season completed, Oklahoma has already accumulated more wins than any other squad since the start of the Big 12 Conference. The previous best record was the 20-13 record produced by the 1997 squad. That season marked OU's last trip to the NCAA Tournament. With a current 12-3 Big 12 mark, it is also the most league wins since 1997 when OU finished with a 13-7 record.
PLAYER TO WATCH: ANNA MONSEN
Libero Anna Monsen has been stellar in Big 12 play this season. She is collecting 4.89 digs per game in conference play and ranks second in the league with that mark.
Additionally, Monsen's current single season dig per game mark ranks second on the all-time Big 12 single season list. The leader is Laura Downey-Wallace who collected 5.47 DPG during the 2002 season at Kansas State.
In overall matches this season, Monsen is averaging a team-best 4.67 digs per game, which also ranks second in the conference.
SOLO LEADER
Middle blocker Eliane Santos has been a force at the net in her two-year career with the Sooners. Santos leads all Big 12 players with 29 solo blocks and ranks fourth in Big 12 play with 1.44 blocks per game. The senior is also the OU rally-scoring record holder with 48 career solo blocks in her two-year stint with the Sooners.
PAIR NAMED ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT
Senior setter Rachel Jackson and junior defensive specialist Hannah Sharp were named to ESPN The Magazine's Academic All-District VI teams on Thursday as announced by CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America). Jackson represented Oklahoma on the second team while Sharp was named to the third team. Oklahoma had more honorees than any other Big 12 school in District VI. Texas A&M, Texas, Baylor and Texas Tech each had one representative on the teams.
SCHMITT MAKES HISTORY
Senior Joanna Schmitt was recognized after the Texas A&M match as she recently became a member of the 1,000 dig club. The outside hitter collected her 1,000th career dig against Texas and became the lone OU rally-scoring player to accomplish the feat. Schmitt now owns 1,071 career digs and 1,590 kills and is the only Sooner in rally-scoring history to own 1,000 digs and kills in her career. Additionally, the senior outside hitter is only the fourth player in the 32-year history of the program to accomplish the feat.
SOONERS COLLECT 20-WIN SEASON
Oklahoma collected its 20th win of the season against TCU on Oct. 31. It marked the first 20-win season for OU since 1997 when the Sooners finished with a 20-13 overall record. In the 32-year history of the program the Sooners have now had 12 20-win seasons.
CHASING BEST BIG 12 RECORD
With five conference matches remaining, the Sooners are in prime position to own their best regular season Big 12 record ever. OU currently owns a 12-3 Big 12 mark and it's already the second-best Big 12 mark behind the 1997 OU team that finished 13-7 in the conference.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
Through 26 matches last season Oklahoma owned a 6-20 overall mark and a 1-16 record in Big 12 play. In 2006, the Sooners have already surpassed last year's win total in conference and overall. A comparison of the stats below shows what a difference a year makes.
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MAKING HISTORY TIMELINE
The 2006 version of the Oklahoma volleyball squad has been all about making history and defying the odds. Below is a timeline of the accomplishments the squad has achieved this season.
Sept. 13 - OU 3, Texas A&M 0
* OU snaps a 27-year losing streak to Texas A&M and earns its first-ever win in College Station in the Big 12 opener.
Sept. 27 - OU 3, #8 Texas 2
* Win over then-No. 8 Texas marks first-time ever OU has beaten Texas in volleyball and the first time since 1998 that OU beat a top-25 team.
Sept. 30 - OU 3, Colorado 2
* Oklahoma beats Colorado for the first time in Boulder since Oct. 13, 1988.
Oct. 2 - OU Ranked No. 25
* OU cracks the top-25 polls on Oct. 2 for the first time since 1988.
Oct. 11 - OU 3, Texas Tech 2
* With a come-from-behind 3-2 win, OU beat Texas Tech in Lubbock for the first time since Oct. 18, 1997.
Oct. 14 - OU 3, Kansas State 2
* OU snaps a 14-match losing streak to Kansas State with a 3-2 win over the Wildcats in Manhattan.
Oct. 18 - OU 3, #12 Missouri 0
* A 12-match losing streak to Missouri is snapped with an upset of the then-No. 12 Tigers.
SEEING DOUBLE
Outside hitter Joanna Schmitt has been the Sooners' go-to-girl this season. It is no surprise as the senior captain is leading the team with a 4.19 kills per game average (sixth in the Big 12) and has recorded 13 double-doubles already this season.
SOONER SWEEPS
The Oklahoma volleyball team is off to one of its best starts in history and not only is the squad winning, it is doing it in convincing fashion. Oklahoma has swept in 15 of its 21 victories this season. Additionally, the squad set a school record with seven consecutive sweeps from Sept. 2 - Sept. 13.
VB Highlights: OU 3, Arkansas 1
Friday, November 21
VB Highlights: OU 3, Alabama 0
Friday, November 07
VB Highlights: OU 3, Mississippi State 0
Wednesday, November 05
VB Highlights: OU 3, Arkansas 1
Wednesday, October 29
