Another Five-Game Win for Volleyball

Oct. 6, 2007

NORMAN, Okla. - It was another five-game match and another win for the Oklahoma volleyball team as the Sooners knocked off the Iowa State Cyclones, 3-2 (19-30, 30-24, 29-31, 30-26, 15-12), Saturday night inside the McCasland Field House.

It marked OU's fourth straight five-game match and its sixth in the last eight matches. The Sooners extended their home winning streak to 15 matches and improved to 14-3 and 6-1 in the Big 12. It was only ISU's second loss in its last 12 matches as the Cyclones fell to 11-6 and 5-2 in the Big 12.

"It was an incredible match for both teams," head coach Santiago Restrepo said. "I was proud of our team for continuing to fight and win another five-game match. Francie (Ekwerekwu) and Sarah (Weiland) really came through for us in the clutch and I thought that was the difference in the match. Anna (Stadel) also came up for us on both sides of the ball as well."

Although the Sooners claimed the match, ISU held the overall advantage in kills, assists, digs and blocks. However, the scrappy Sooners hung tough and had its best offensive outing in the fifth game where it hit at a .258 hitting percentage.

For the second straight match, Sarah Weiland led the Oklahoma offense as she registered her second straight double-double with 19 kills and 10 digs. 12 of Weiland's kills came in the third and fourth games of the match.

Ekwerekwu was also solid offensively as she recorded 15 kills on a .333 hitting percentage while also adding three block assists and a block solo. Fellow middle blocker Anna Stadel was the third Sooner to record double-digit kills with a12 and a team-leading .385 hitting percentage. Stadel added two solo blocks and two block assists on the defensive end for the Sooners.

Libero Hannah Sharp led the back row with 18 digs while Lacy Barnes added 15.

Oklahoma got off to a slow start in frame one as the Cyclones out hit the Sooners, .471 to .023 in the first game. ISU's Erin Boeve and Victoria Henson each recorded five hits as ISU dominated game one, 30-19.

The Sooners rallied back in frame two behind Ekwerekwu who recorded six kills with no errors in the second game. Ekwerekwu was also solid defensively with two block assists and a block solo.

Both teams went back and forth in the third frame, but ISU won the battle, 31-29, despite Weiland's eight kills in the game. The Sooners trailed 27-23 in the game but came back to tie it up at 29-29. However, ISU followed with a kill and an OU attack error gave the third frame to the Cyclones as they led 2-1 in the match.

The defense made the difference for the Sooners in game four as OU held the Cyclones to a .075 hitting percentage in the frame while adding three blocks. Oklahoma took the lead at 4-3 and never looked back. ISU closed the gap to 26-23, but the Sooners kept their momentum and pushed it to a game five.

The fifth and deciding game was intense with seven ties and four lead changes. The Sooners trailed 12-10 in the final frame but scored five straight points, including three kills by Bridget Laplante.

The Sooners hit the road this Wednesday night as they head to Lubbock, Texas to face the Texas Tech Red Raiders at 7 p.m. Oklahoma will return to the McCasland Field House next Saturday, Oct. 13 for a 1 p.m. meeting against top-ranked and undefeated Nebraska.

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