Volleyball Closes Out Regular Season

Nov. 27, 2009

Oklahoma (18-10, 11-8 Big 12) at No. 7 Iowa State (24-4, 16-3 Big 12)
Match 29	Saturday, Nov. 28, 2009 \| 6 p.m. CT
Location	Ames, Iowa \| Hilton Coliseum (8,524)
Tickets	$5 (adults) \| $4 (youth)
Internet	Live Stats \| Webcast (subscription required)
Game Info	2009 Media Guide \| Match Notes

SOONERS REACH END OF REGULAR SEASON
The University of Oklahoma volleyball team closes out the 2009 regular season Saturday evening. First serve between OU and seventh-ranked Iowa State is set for 6:30 p.m. CT at Hilton Coliseum.

SOONERS REWIND: NO. 2 TEXAS TOO MUCH FOR OU
The nation's second ranked team proved too powerful for a young Oklahoma squad Wednesday evening at McCasland Field House. The Sooners fell in straight sets (-19, -14, -19) to Texas. Caitlin Higgins and Francie Ekwerekwu paced the Sooners with nine kills each. Suzy Boulavsky followed with eight, while Bridget Laplante and Brianne Barker added three kills each.

SOONERS RAISE FUNDS FOR JIMMY EVEREST CENTER
University of Oklahoma volleyball fans contributed more than $4,000 to the Jimmy Everest Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at the Children's Hospital at OU Medical Center during the team's Pledge for a Cure event on Sept. 30. Visit SoonerSports.com for details on how fans can still contribute monetary donations in memory of Javier Restrepo. To date, contributions total more than $8,700.

OKLAHOMA'S DEFENSE ONE OF NATION'S BEST
Oklahoma is second the Big 12 in digs per set with 17.61, a mark that is 13th in the nation. National leader NJIT averages 19.81 per set. Freshman María Fernanda ranks fifth in the league in digs per set and 81st in the nation with 4.46 per set.

FREUDENRICH RANKED IN TOP 120 NATIONALLY
Sarah Freudenrich ranks in the top 120 nationally in blocks per set (106th, 1.06/set) and hitting percentage (118th, .306). Francie Ekwerekwu is 195th in the nation in blocks (0.94/set).

LAPLANTE'S CAREER ACCOMPLISHMENT
Bridget Laplante has reached the 1,000/1,000 mark for her career. Laplante (1,107 kills and 1,309digs) becomes just the second Sooner under Santiago Restrepo to reach the plateau after Joanna Schmitt accomplished the feat from 2003-06 with 1,730 career kills and 1,177 career digs.

RESTREPO ONE WIN SHY OF #100
Oklahoma head coach Santiago Restrepo is one win shy of his 100th victory at the school. In six seasons overseeing the Sooner program, Restrepo owns a mark of 99-80.

NOT GIVING UP POINTS IN THE NET
Oklahoma has been called for 32 blocking errors this season, while its opponents have been whistled for being in the net a total of 56 times.

REMEMBERING JAVI: SOONERS CONTINUE MISSION
Throughout the 2009 season, the Oklahoma volleyball team continues their year-long mission to honor the son of their head coach, Santiago Restrepo. When he was just one-and-a-half years old, Javier Restrepo was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). In August 2008, he had a relapse and received a bone marrow transplant and then received a liver transplant but unfortunately relapsed again. Javi fought the disease like a true champion, nearly beating it on multiple occasions before it ultimately claimed his life on July 31, 2009.

OKLAHOMA MATCHES MARK
Under Santiago Restrepo, Oklahoma is 9-43 against ranked opponents with seven of those wins coming in the last three seasons. With the win at Baylor on Nov. 4, OU matched a program high with its third win over a ranked opponent this season. Oklahoma went 3-6 against ranked foes in 2007 and is 3-6 this year.

SOONERS OUT-HITTING OPPONENTS
Oklahoma fares quite well in out-hitting opponents. The Sooners have hit .210 as team. They have held opponents to a .163 clip. Oklahoma has held its opponents to a below .200 in 19 matches this season.

BOULAVSKY BECOMES THREAT
Sophomore Suzy Boulavsky is finally getting her due as an offensive threat. Boulavsky leads OU with 300 kills and a 3.06 kps average on the year and has produced double-digit totals in 14 matches.

ONE-WOMAN WRECKING CREW
Sarah Freudenrich is causing havoc in most matches she has played in this season. Freudenrich is averaging 2.29 kills per set and hitting a team-best .306. In 96 sets played this season, she has 10 or more kills in 11 of those contests. Considering her offensive power is potent, what really makes her a valuable commodity is her blocking. She already has 102 blocks on the year, a 1.06 per set average. She has 15 block solos and 87 block assists on the year.

EKWEREKWU AN OFFENSIVE LEADER
Francie Ekwerekwu currently is second on the team with 2.68 kills per set. She averages 0.94 blocks per set (14 block solos, 77 block assists). Ekwerekwu has played in 97 sets this year and is second on the team with 3.34 points per set.

HIGGINS LEADS IN ACES
Caitlin Higgins leads Oklahoma with 20 service aces on the year. María Fernanda has 16, while Brianne Barker has tallied 15 and Francie Ekwerekwu has 11.

ON TRACK FOR A CAREER MARK
Sophomore setter Brianne Barker has 2,005 career assists already. OU has separate records for each scoring era but Barker's current mark would rank in the top five of both the sideout scoring and 30-point rally scoring records.

OKLAHOMA AGAINST THE BIG 12
Oklahoma owns a winning series against four Big 12 opponents (Baylor, Kansas, Kansas State and Missouri) but has just an 94-185 mark in conference play.

BARKER A CVU TOP PREFORMER
Setter Brianne Barker was named a CVU.com Top Preformer on Nov. 10 after leading OU to wins over Baylor and Kansas. Barker averaged 11.67 assists, 2.33 digs, 1.83 kills, hit .600 and averaged 0.83 blocks per set.

SOONERS DOMINATE JAYHAWKS
Oklahoma hit .341 and out-blocked Kansas, 8-2 on Nov. 7. It was the ninth time this season Oklahoma held an opponent under a .100 hitting percentage as the Jayhawks connected on only 28 of their 93 attempts. Oklahoma's six service aces tied for the third-most this season.

LAPLANTE EARNS HONOR
University of Oklahoma volleyball student-athlete Bridget Laplante has been honored by the Big 12 Conference as a member of the fall Chick-fil-a Community of Champions. She is actively involved with various projects around the Norman area, including serving as a volunteer for Race for the Cure, Special Olympics, the Oklahoma City Memorial Kids' Run and KinderCare. A member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Laplante is also a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Society of Women Engineers, Alpha Lambda Delta Honors Society and Sigma Alpha Pi Leadership Society. Laplante is a standout in the classroom, earning Academic All-Big 12 first team honors the past two seasons. She was named to the College of Engineering Dean's Honor Roll and Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll the past three seasons.

OU SWEEPS NO. 20 BAYLOR
The University of Oklahoma volleyball team dropped No. 20 Baylor in straight sets (-22, -20, 22) Nov. 4. Francie Ekwerekwu led Oklahoma with a season-high 18 kills and a .654 hitting percentage, committing just one attack error in 26 attempts. Defensively, three Sooners totaled double-digit digs with Bridget Laplante leading the way with 15.

DUO ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT
University of Oklahoma volleyball student-athletes Suzy Boulavsky and Caitlin Higgins were named 2009 College Sports Information Directors of America Academic All-District. Boulavsky earned first team honors, while Higgins was named to the third team. Boulavsky boasts a 3.90 grade point average in journalism. Boulavsky currently leads Oklahoma with 2.90 kills per set, having 238 on the year. She also averages 1.24 digs per set and has recorded the first two double-doubles of her career this year. Boulavsky is second on the team with a 3.31 points per set average. Higgins has a 3.39 GPA in general studies.

A WINNING REGULAR SEASON
After finishing last season two wins shy of a .500 mark (12-16), the 2009 Sooners clinched a winning regular season after defeating Kansas State on Oct. 31.

OU DOWNS RANKED OPPONENTS
Oklahoma defeated No. 19 Baylor 3-2 on Oct. 17 and followed by sweeping No. 21 Texas A&M on Oct. 21. It marked the first time in school history the Sooners defeated ranked opponents in back-to-back matches.

OKLAHOMA SWEEPS NO. 21 A&M
Oklahoma downed the Texas A&M Aggies in straight sets [-23, -21, -23] on Oct. 21. Caitlin Higgins led OU with 11 kills, hitting .267 on the night. Brianne Barker recorded her 14th double-double of the season with 31 assists and 12 digs. Suzy Boulavsky tallied double-digit digs for the second consecutive match with 16 digs.

OKLAHOMA UPSETS N0. 19 BAYLOR
The University of Oklahoma volleyball team defeated No. 19 Baylor 25-13, 21-25, 25-17, 19-25, 15-12 at McCasland Field House on Oct. 17. It marked Oklahoma's first win over a ranked opponent at home since defeating No. 14 Kansas State 3-1 on Oct. 19, 2007. Suzy Boulavsky recorded her first career double-double with a career high 21 kills and a career-high 20 digs. Boulavsky hit a match-high .455, recording just one attack error in 44 attempts. She also brought down five total blocks, including one block solo.

LAPLANTE SETS NEW DIGS MARK
With 27 digs at Kansas, senior Bridget Laplante surpassed her previous career best of 26 set at Kansas State on Oct. 18, 2007.

SIDING ON THE RIGHT
Oklahoma has produced a sideout percentage of 100 percent during two sets this season. The rare feat was accomplished against North Carolina and UT-Arlington. It has only been done six times under head coach Santiago Restrepo.

BOULAVSKY EARNS OFFENSIVE POW
Suzy Boulavsky was named the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week on Oct 19. Boulavsky earned the honor after her stellar performance in Oklahoma's five-set upset of No. 19 Baylor on Saturday. She recorded her first career double-double with a career high 21 kills and a career-high 20 digs. Boulavsky hit a match-high .455, recording just one attack error in 44 attempts. She also brought down five total blocks, including one block solo and one service ace. Boulavsky was also named a CVU.com Top Performer on Oct. 20.

FERNANDA EARNS ROOKIE AWARD
Freshman libero María Fernanda was named the Big 12 Rookie of the Week on Oct. 5. Fernanda is the first Sooner to be named Rookie of the Week since Sarah Freudenrich earned the award Oct. 22, 2008. Fernanda is the only Sooner to be honored twice.

FERNANDA NAMED DEFENSIVE POW
Freshman libero María Fernanda was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week on Sept 20. Fernanda is the first Sooner to be named Defensive Player of the Week since Mariana Blum earned the honor on Sept. 10, 2007. Previously, teammates Sarah Freudenrich (Rookie of the Week; Oct. 22, 2008) and Caitlin Higgins (Offensive Player of the Week; Nov. 3, 2008) were honored with weekly awards.

BOULAVSKY SETS MARK VS. TECH
Suzy Boulavsky recorded a new career high with a .636 hitting percentage against Texas Tech.