OU Hosts No. 6 Texas Wednesday

Oct. 16, 2007

NORMAN, Okla. - The schedule does not get any easier for the No. 23 Oklahoma volleyball team. The Sooners will continue their three-match home stand this week as they host No. 6 Texas (12-3, 8-1 Big 12) this Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the McCasland Field House. The challenging slate continues for the Sooners on Friday as they host No. 14 Kansas State (14-5, 6-3 Big 12) at 6 p.m. at the Field House.

LIVE STATS
Live stats of Wednesday's match will be available at SoonerSports.com. A live webcast of the match will also be available on OU's All-Access section of the web site for a fee.

PROMOTIONS/TICKETS
The first 500 fans through the doors on Wednesday night will receive free OU pom poms. In addition, one lucky OU fan will receive a free limited edition OU bicycle.

OU students receive free admission with valid student ID. Regular prices are $7 for adults and $5 for youth. Children five and under receive free admission.

THE MATCH UP
Oklahoma will face its second straight top-10 team on Wednesday in the No. 6 Texas Longhorns. Texas has been on a roll as it has won eight straight conference matches after losing its opener to No. 1 Nebraska, 3-0, in Lincoln. Wednesday night's contest will be a battle between two of the top squads in the Big 12. The Horns currently sit in second in the league standings with an 8-1 record while Oklahoma follows in third with a 7-2 mark in conference action.

SCOUTING TEXAS
The Longhorns enter Wednesday night's match as the top-blocking squad in the conference. The Horns are averaging 3.12 blocks per game in Big 12 action compared to OU's 2.19 BPG in conference play. Three different Longhorn starters are tallying at least a block per game as Brandy Magee leads with 1.28 blocks per game while Destinee Hooker (1.21 BPG) and Lauren Paolini (1.17 BPG) follow.

The UT offense complements the defense well as the Horns are fifth in the nation in hitting percentage (.339) as it averaged 17.90 kills per game in Big 12 play behind the top two offensive performers in the conference in Juliann Faucette, who averages a Big 12-best 5.17 KPG on a .359 hitting percentage and Hooker, who owns 4.92 KPG on a .337 clip.

PLAYER TO WATCH: BRIDGET LAPLANTE
Sophomore Bridget Laplante is coming off a strong outing against No. 1 Nebraska as she tallied her 10th double-double of the season with 10 kills and 12 digs. The sophomore was one of OU's best offensive weapons against Texas last season as she averaged 4.10 kills per game on a .326 hitting percentage in the two combined matches. Laplante has been one of OU's top options on offense this season as she is tallying 3.37 kills per game this season.

LAST TIME THEY MET
The Sooners made history last season when they defeated then-No. 8 Texas for the first time in school history. The Sooners edged out the Horns in the five-game match in Norman by scores of 30-28, 30-21, 31-33, 26-30 and 15-13. The two squads met again in Austin later in the season with the Horns besting the Sooners in a five-game match (27-30, 25-30, 30-27, 30-25, 11-15). Bridget Laplante had two strong outings against the Horns as a freshman last season. The outside hitter averaged 4.10 KPG on a .326 hitting percentage while collecting 2.60 digs per game and tallying 0.80 blocks per game in the two combined matches.

SERIES RECORDS
Oklahoma made history in 2006 with its first-ever win over the Longhorns. The Sooners defeated the Horns, 3-2, in Norman on September 27, 2006. Texas leads the series 29-1 dating back to the first match between the two squads in 1975. In matches in Norman, UT leads 10-1.

SOONERS AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS
Oklahoma owns a 2-2 record against ranked opponents with two five-game road wins over then-No. 25 Texas A&M and No. 16 Kansas State. OU dropped a non-conference match to No. 18 San Diego and was swept by No. 1 Nebraska. OU's upset over No. 8 Texas last season marked the school's first win over a ranked team since 1998.

NO. 1 NEBRASKA TOO MUCH FOR THE SOONERS
The Sooners were unable to pull off the upset of No. 1 Nebraska last Saturday as the Sooners fell to the Huskers, 3-0 (30-25, 30-21, 30-25). The loss snapped OU's 15-match home win streak. Bridget Laplante led the team with her 10th double-double of the season after recording a team-best 10 kills and collecting a team-high 12 digs.

BEST START IN SCHOOL HISTORY
The Sooners tied the 1984 squad with the best start in school history. The 1984 team opened the season at 15-4. Currently, the 2007 Sooners own a 15-4 record. Additionally, OU's 5-0 start to Big 12 play was the best start to Big 12 action ever for the Sooners. Oklahoma had never even won two straight matches to open Big 12 play prior to this season.

UP NEXT
The Sooners will play their third straight top-25 team on Friday as they host No. 14 Kansas State at the McCasland Field House at 6 p.m. The contest will also mark Breast Cancer Awareness Night with the first 500 fans receiving a free pink t-shirt. The night will also be filled with facts and statistics throughout the match.

Oklahoma will hit the road again next Wednesday, Oct. 24 as it heads to Boulder to take on the Colorado Buffs. The two squads met earlier this season in Norman with OU edging out CU, 3-2, to claim the win.

HOME SWEET HOME
OU's 15-match home win streak was snapped by No. 1 Nebraska on Oct. 13. Prior to that OU's last loss at home was in 2006, also to No. 1 Nebraska. Including the 2006 and 2007 seasons, Oklahoma is 19-3 at the McCasland Field House.

SOONERS MOVE UP TO NO. 23
After sweeping Texas Tech and dropping a three-game match to No .1 Nebraska last week, Oklahoma moved up to No. 23 in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll released on Oct. 15. The Sooners moved up two spots from last week's ranking of No. 25.

The Sooners are one of four Big 12 teams ranked in the top-25. Nebraska remains No. 1 in the country while Texas moved to No. 6 and Kansas State moved up to No. 14 in the latest poll.

Oklahoma was ranked No. 22 in the preseason poll and moved to No. 21 in the Aug. 27 poll before falling out. Oklahoma reappeared at No. 25 in the Sept. 24 poll and the Oct. 8 poll.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Related News

Related Videos

Sponsors