Volleyball Travels to No. 20 Baylor

Nov. 3, 2009

Oklahoma (15-7, 8-5 Big 12) at No. 20 Baylor (19-5, 8-5 Big 12)
Match 23	Wednesday, November 4, 2009 \| 7 p.m. CT
Location	Waco, Texas \| The Ferrell Center (6,000)
Tickets	$5 (adults) \| $3 (youth)
Internet	Live Stats \| Webcast (free)
Game Info	2009 Media Guide \| Match Notes

OU HITS THE ROAD TO TAKE ON BAYLOR
The University of Oklahoma volleyball team travels to No. 20 Baylor on Wednesday evening to take on the Bears. First serve from The Ferrell Center is set for 7 p.m. CT.

SOONERS REWIND: OU DOWNS COLORADO IN THREE
The University of Oklahoma volleyball team overcame a slow start to defeat Kansas State, 3-1 (29-31, 25-20, 25-21, 25-17) on Saturday afternoon. The Sooners dropped the opening set in extra points before coming to life to take the final three sets over the Wildcats. The match went back-and-forth and featured 38 ties and 12 lead changes. Setter Brianne Barker recorded her 17th double-double of the season with 49 assists and 22 digs. It was Barker's sixth career match with 20 or more digs. Suzy Boulavsky and Francie Ekwerekwu led the offensive attack with 17 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 $9,700.

OKLAHOMA'S DEFENSE ONE OF NATION'S BEST
Oklahoma is second the Big 12 in digs per set with 17.81, a mark that is 11th in the nation. National leader NJIT averages 20.24 per set. Freshman María Fernanda ranks third in the league in digs per set and 54th in the nation with 4.70 per set.

FREUDENRICH RANKED IN TOP 150 NATIONALLY
Junior Sarah Freudenrich ranks in the top 150 nationally in blocks per set (93rd, 1.09/set) and hitting percentage (112th, .323). Junior Francie Ekwerekwu is 177th in the nation in blocks (0.97/set).

RESTREPO FOUR WINS SHY OF #100
Oklahoma head coach Santiago Restrepo is four wins shy of his 100th victory at the school. In six seasons overseeing the Sooner program, Restrepo owns a mark of 96-78.

LAPLANTE'S CAREER ACCOMPLISHMENT
Senior Bridget Laplante reached the 1,000/1,000 mark for her career. Laplante (1,090 kills and 1,243 digs) becomes just the second Sooner under Restrepo to reach the plateau after Joanna Schmitt accomplished the feat from 2003-06 with 1,730 career kills and 1,177 career digs.

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.

TIME CHANGE FOR SATURDAY'S KANSAS MATCH
The University of Oklahoma volleyball match against Kansas scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 7 has been moved up to a 2 p.m. CT start from its original time of 7 p.m. CT. The Girl Scout clinic scheduled for that day will be held immediately following the match.

LAPLANTE NAMED TO COMMUNITY OF CHAMPIONS
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 the 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.

OKLAHOMA HITS LIGHTS OUT AGAINST BUFFS
Oklahoma produced a .343 hitting percentage against Colorado, the second highest total this season. Six Sooners hit .300 or better, highlighted by junior Francie Ekwerekwu's .857 clip.

SOONERS' SECURE WINNING REGULAR SEASON
After finishing last season two wins shy of a .500 mark (12-16), the 2009 Sooners clinched a winning regular season with a mark of at least 15-14 after defeating Kansas State on Oct. 31.

BOULAVSKY EMERGING AS THREAT
Sophomore Suzy Boulavsky is finally getting her due as an offensive threat. Boulavsky leads OU with 225 kills and a 2.85 kps average on the year and has produced double-digit totals in 11 matches.

SOONERS AGAINST RANKED FOES
Under Santiago Restrepo, Oklahoma is 8-42 against ranked opponents with six of those wins coming in the last three seasons. The most wins for OU over ranked opponents was a 3-6 mark in 2007. OU is 2-5 this season.

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.

ONE-WOMAN WRECKING CREW
Sarah Freudenrich is causing havoc in most matches she has played in this season. Freudenrich is averaging 2.36 kills per set and hitting a team-best .323. In 81 sets played this season, she has 10 or more kills in 10 of those contests. Considering her offensive power is potent, what really makes her a valuable commodity is her blocking. She already has 88 blocks on the year, a 1.09 per set average. She has 14 block solos and 74 block assists on the year.

EKWEREKWU AN OFFENSIVE LEADER
Francie Ekwerekwu currently is second on the team with 2.55 kills per set. She averages 0.97 blocks per set (12 block solos, 64 block assists). Ekwerekwu has played in 78 sets this year and leads Oklahoma with 3.26 points per set.

BARKER, FERNANDA LEAD IN ACES
Brianne Barker and María Fernanda lead Oklahoma with 15 service aces. Caitlin Higgins has 13, while Francie Ekwerekwu has 11. Danielle Alva is the fifth Sooner to produce aces in the double digits with 10.

ON TRACK FOR A CAREER MARK
Sophomore setter Brianne Barker has 1,800 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.

NOT GIVING UP POINTS IN THE NET
Oklahoma has been called for 23 blocking errors this season, while its opponents have been whistled for being in the net a total of 44 times.

SOONERS OUT-HITTING OPPONENTS
Oklahoma fares quite well in out-hitting opponents. The Sooners have hit .208 as team in 22 matches. They have held opponents to a .152 clip. Defensively, OU is out-digging opponents 17.8 per set to 17.0 per set and 2.3 blocks per to 2.0 blocks per set.

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 91-182 mark in conference play.

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.

THE TURNAROUND UNDER RESTREPO
Oklahoma has improved dramatically under head coach Santiago Restrepo. The proof is in the numbers produced by the Sooners under Restrepo compared to those prior to his arrival. See this week's match notes for a comparison.

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 CVU TOP PERFORMER
Suzy 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.

DELAYED HOMESTAND
After playing its 12 of its first 13 matches on the road, Oklahoma played six of its next nine matches at home beginning with the Sept. 30 Nebraska match. The streak ended with a home match against Kansas State on Oct. 31.

HOME SWEET HOME
Oklahoma played in the friendly confines of the McCasland Field House for the first time this season on Sept. 19. The last time OU played a home opener later was when the Sooners opened their 2003 home slate on Sept. 24 against Texas. The last time OU played their first two home matches later than Sept. 30 was also in 2003. The Sooners played their second home match against Nebraska on Oct. 4.

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

SOONERS DOMINATE RED RAIDERS
As a team, Oklahoma hit .320 against Texas Tech, marking the sixth time this season OU has hit at least .250 in a match. The Sooners have hit .300 or better on just two occasions - against TTU and a .347 clip against Rice.

HIGGINS LEADS OU AT KANSAS
Sophomore Caitlin Higgins recorded a season-high 17 kills to lead OU at Kansas. Higgins also added 10 digs for her third double-double this season.

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.

ALVA COMES UP BIG ON DEFENSE
Sophomore Danielle Alva saw time in all four sets at Kansas State. Alva's 14 digs were a career high, she added a service ace and assist in the win.

GRAND HOMECOMING
Francie Ekwerekwu had a stellar performance at the UT-Arlington Invitational, earning Most Valuable Player honors. In her return to her hometown, Ekwerekwu led OU with 3.12 kills per set and a .327 hitting percentage. She also recorded nine blocks (1.12/set), including one block solo. Her three service aces and seven digs also contributed to OU winning the tournament with a 2-0 mark.

SHOCKER CLASSIC ALL-TOURNEY
María Fernanda was named to the all-tournament for the Best Western Shocker Classic. It marks the second straight weekend the rookie was named among the best at an event. She was previously named to the all-tournament team at the Mizuno Invitational in Houston.

SOONERS HIT WELL AGAINST RICE
As a team, Oklahoma hit .347 against Rice on Aug. 28. The last time the Sooners produced a match with a better percentage was against Seton Hall on Aug. 25, 2007.

TRIO NAMED ALL-TOURNAMENT
Sophomore setter Brianne Barker was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2009 Mizuno Invitational hosted by Rice. Freshman L María Fernanda was named to the team as was senior OH Bridget Laplante. Barker averaged 9.85 assists per set and 3.31 digs. Fernanda led OU with 4.23 digs per set and Laplante led the team in kills with 34.

A TALE OF TWO SEASONS
When Oklahoma began the 2008 season, the Sooners returned just two starters. What a difference a year makes. To start the 2009 season, Oklahoma returns all six position starters. Of those six, one is a senior (OH Bridget Laplante). The team's only other senior is OH Jackie Fotu.