Sooner Rally Beats Tech, 3-1

NORMAN, Okla. For the second straight match against Texas Tech, the No. 15 Oklahoma volleyball team 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) inside the Field House Wednesday night.

The Sooners pushed their overall record to 21-5 and 12-3 in the Big 12 while extending their home winning streak to seven matches. OU remains one game behind second-place Texas (13-3) in the conference race.

Box Score | Cumulative Stats | 2006 Schedule

“I tip my hat to Texas Tech tonight because they fought the entire match and made it a great battle tonight,” head coach Santiago Restrepo said. “We were lucky to come out with a win tonight because three out of those four games could have gone either way. This just shows how tough the Big 12 is and how we must bring our a' game every night because our conference is so tough top to bottom.”

OU had five players record double-digit kills with Joanna Schmitt leading the way 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. Seniors Laura Tomes and Eliane Santos added 10 kills each.

While the offense recorded a .244 hitting percentage, the Sooner defense registered 13.5 blocks behind Weiland's six block assists and Santos' four solo blocks.

In addition to Schmitt's double-digit digs, libero Anna Monsen collected a match-high 24 while setter Rachel Jackson recorded 13.

The Texas Tech offense was on fire in game one as TTU's Philister Sang pounded eight of her match-high 21 kills in game one as the Red Raiders registered a .325 clip in the first frame. Tech jumped out to the early lead and the closest Oklahoma would get was a 17-17 tie, but the Red Raiders rallied and took the first game.

With Tech leading 1-0, Oklahoma had to rally and come back against the Red Raiders in game two. Tech jumped out to a 7-1 lead in frame two, but OU slowly chipped away and used a 4-0 run to close the gap at 22-20. However, the Sooners didn't take their first lead of the entire match until 29-28, part of a 4-0 run that Sooners used to close out the entire match.

Junior Anna Stadel, who has seen little action this Big 12 season, made a huge impact in game two. After subbing in with the score 7-2, two straight blocks by Stadel turned the momentum OU's way. In frame two, Stadel hit .667 with two kills while also adding a solo block and three block assists to highlight the Sooner come back.

Tech jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the third frame, but Oklahoma wouldn't give up as the Sooners tied it up four times before taking the lead at 12-11 and never trailing again.

The fourth and final game was similar to the first two as there were 14 ties and seven different lead changes. With the score tied at 26-26, Tech used two straight kills to take the 28-26 advantage. However, OU went on a 4-0 run to close out the match that included the game-winning kill by Weiland.

The Sooners continue their home stand this Saturday as they host Kansas State at 1 p.m. at the Field House. As a special promotion for all fans, there will be free admission to the match on Saturday. It will be a great opportunity to catch a glimpse of the top-15 squad prior to the football game that night.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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