OU Welcomes Wildcats Wednesday

NORMAN – OU volleyball is set for a pair of matches at home this week beginning with Kansas State on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m. CT, followed by a Saturday clash with Iowa State at 6 p.m. CT.

The K-State contest will be broadcast on Fox Sports Oklahoma with Chad McKee on play-by-play and Kelly Files the color analyst. The match will also be available on 93.3 FM in Norman with Chris Plank on the call.

Saturday's contest with Iowa State is set for 6 p.m. CT. Live stats will be available on oklahoma.statbroadcast.com.

GAMEDAY STORYLINES

LAST TIME OUT

OU came up short to No. 4 Texas as the Sooners fell 25-17, 27-25, 25-20 on Oct. 12 in Austin.

The Longhorns out-hit OU .238 to .206 in the contest. OU narrowly trailed in kills, putting away 38 to Texas' 40. Ashlynn Dunbar had her 10^th double-digit kills performance of the season as she put away 10 kills to pace the OU attack. Paige Anderson swung .500 on eight kills in the contest to mark the fourth time she's hit over .400 in a match in 2019.

Sarah Sanders chipped in seven kills on a .200 clip and Sarah Maras and Brianna Kadiku added six apiece. Kylee McLaughlin recorded 20 assists before freshman Rylie Gregston made her first appearance at setter and tallied nine. Defensively, Keyton Kinley led the Sooners with 10 digs. OU had four blocks on the night with Anderson getting in on three of them.

PROTECT THIS HOUSE

OU is undefeated (6-0) at McCasland Field House this season. The Sooners have given up just four sets across its home contests this season.

Oklahoma swept the competition at the OU Nike Invitational Sept. 13-4, downing Arizona State (3-2), Louisiana (3-0) and Georgia Tech (3-1).

The Sooners closed out the non-conference slate with a 3-1 win against SMU Sept. 21 and swept TCU in the Big 12 opener on Sept. 25. In their most recent contest at the Field House, OU topped Kansas 4-1 on Oct. 5.

OU has hit .235 inside McCasland Field House while holding opponents to .156 in home matches.

DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS

Into the fourth week of Big 12 action, OU ranks in the top three of four defensive statistical categories: digs (1016), digs per set (15.88), blocks (146), blocks per set (2.28) and opponent hitting percentage (.177).

The Sooners are first in digs per set with 15.88 and third in total digs with 1016. OU ranks second in total blocks (146) and checks in at No. 3 in blocks per set with an average of 2.28. Oklahoma has held its opponents to a .177 hitting percentage, the second lowest among Big 12 schools. OU is 10-0 when keeping opponents to .100-.199.

Individually, Kinley leads all Big 12 players in digs (281) and digs per set (5.02). The next closest player is West Virginia's Alexa Hasting, who owns 268 digs and a 4.25 digs per set average. Kinley's 32 digs in five sets against Oregon State are the most by a Big 12 player a single match this season. The junior is No. 35 nationally in digs per set with a 4.93 average. Kinley is the Big 12 leader and and third among Power Five players.

Kadiku is second in the league in blocks per set with 1.23. The senior ranks second in total blocks with 65.

As a team, OU checks in at No. 38 nationally in digs per set (16.33), good for third in the Power Five.

DOUBLE-DOUBLES EVERYWHERE

Multiple Sooners have registered multiple double-doubles this season as setter McLaughlin has eight and Dunbar is right behind with six.

Three OU players had double-doubles in the Kansas contest as Dunbar had 18 kills and 11 digs; McLaughlin had 37 assists to go with 12 digs; and libero Kinley had 16 digs and a season-high 11 assists.

OU is 10-1 in contests where one player records a double-double, with the lone loss at Texas A&M on Sept. 17 as Dunbar had 19 kills and 12 digs.

The Sooners are 4-0 when two or more players have had double-doubles with wins over Yale, Arizona State, Georgia Tech and Kansas

GO-TO GIRL

Outside hitter Dunbar has proven herself as OU's go-to hitter this season with 530. The graduate transfer leads the team in kills with 171, 20 ahead of the next closest player in Sarah Sanders.

Dunbar has registered double-digit kills in eight of OU's 15 matches. She has tallied 15 or more kills in five of those contests, most recently against Kansas when she put away 18.

Dunbar is No. 5 in the Big 12 in total kills and kills per set (3.49). The Seabrook, Texas, native has been responsible for 188.5 total points this season, placing her seventh among league players. Her 3.85 points per set average ranks sixth in the Big 12.

A seasoned all-around player, Dunbar has also racked up 110 digs for the fourth-most by a Sooner this season. Dunbar is OU's only non-defensive specialist to have eclipsed 100 digs this season.

CAN'T TOUCH THIS

With 71 aces this season, OU ranks third in the Big 12 from behind the service line. The Sooners average 1.61 aces per set.

Kadiku has fired off 16 aces with a season-high three against Kansas. McLaughlin has 14 on the year and also registered a season-best three in the Kansas match. Paige Johnson joins them in double figures with 11 in 2019.

QUICK HITS

The Sooners are tied with Texas Tech for third place in the Big 12 with a 3-2 mark.
Oklahoma checks in at No. 31 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings.
OU earned the 800^th program win as it defeated Kansas 3-1 in Norman on Oct. 5.
Oklahoma is undefeated at home, compiling a 6-0 record inside McCasland Field House.
The Sooners are undefeated in four-set matches and 5-1 in five-set matches.

SCOUTING REPORT

KANSAS STATE

The Wildcats enter Wednesday's contest at 6-11 overall and 1-4 against the Big 12. Kansas State is tied for last in the league with West Virginia and TCU. In its last outing, Kansas State fell to West Virginia 3-1 in Manhattan.

OU leads the all-time series with K-State 55-33-1 and is 28-14 against the Wildcats at home. The Sooners swept last year's series, taking out the Wildcats 3-0 in Norman and 3-1 on the road.

UP NEXT

The Sooners are home Saturday to host Iowa State at 6 p.m. CT. Saturday is fan appreciation day and free admission will be provided to all.

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