Sooners at Kansas Saturday

NORMAN – Big 12 play continues Saturday as the Oklahoma volleyball team travels to Lawrence, Kansas for an 11 a.m. meeting with the Jayhawks.

The contest will be available for streaming via Big 12 Now on ESPN+.

GAMEDAY STORYLINES

LAST TIME OUT

The Sooners took No. 3 Baylor to the brink Wednesday night inside McCasland Field House, pushing the Bears to five sets. Baylor took the match 26-24, 15-25, 29-31, 25-15,15-12.

Baylor narrowly out-hit OU .162 to .160 in the match, but OU's dependable defense out-blocked the Bears 13.0-9.5. Senior middle blocker Brianna Kadiku tallied a season high 10 blocks.

Libero Keyton Kinley led all players in digs, finishing with a total of 26 on the night. Paige Anderson added 19, while Ashlynn Dunbar posted 12. Sophomore Aysia Harty added 10.

Dunbar led the Sooners with 18 kills on the night, recording another double-double. Freshman Sanaá Dotson put away 11 kills for her second-straight performance with more than 10 kills. Anderson joined Dunbar and Dotson in double-figure kills, recording 10 on the night.

RPI ON THE RISE

OU checked in at No. 25 in this week's RPI release. The Sooners have eight wins over top-100 RPI teams: No. 32 Iowa State; No. 42 Arizona State; No. 54 SMU; No. 59 Yale; No. 65 Texas Tech; No. 70 Georgia Tech; No. 77 TCU; No. 84 Indiana and No. 95 Oregon State. OU ranks third in the Big 12 behind AVCA and RPI top-five teams Baylor (No. 1) and Texas (No. 2).

DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS

Into the sixth week of Big 12 action, OU ranks in the top five among Big 12 teams in five defensive categories: digs (1355), digs per set (16.5), total blocks (194), blocks per set (2.4) and opponent hitting percentage (.167).

The Sooners are first in total digs, amassing 1355. OU also leads the league in digs per set with a 16.5 average.

Oklahoma has held its opponents to a .173 hitting percentage to rank second among Big 12 schools. OU is 12-0 when holding opponents to .100-.199 hitting and 1-0 when keeping them to .000-.099.

Individually Kinley leads all Big 12 players in digs (386) and digs per set (5.22). Kinley has three 30+ digs performances this season, with her 32 against Oregon State the second-most by a Big 12 player this year. Brianna Kadiku is second in total blocks (88) and blocks per set (1.24).

DOUBLE-DOUBLES EVERYWHERE

Multiple Sooners have registered multiple double-doubles this season as setter McLaughlin has 10 and Dunbar has recorded nine. Dunbar's most recent one came against Baylor, when she 18 kills and 12 digs.

OU is 13-2 in contests where one player records a double-double. The Sooners are 5-0 when two or more players have had double-doubles with wins over Yale, Arizona State, Georgia Tech, Kansas and Texas Tech.

A VERSATILE TRIO

Sooners' trio of setter McLaughlin, libero Kinley and outside hitter Dunbar have done it all for OU, taking on roles outside their positions.
An offensive threat, McLaughlin has more kills than any other setter in the Big 12 conference with 60 total. She also has 203 digs on the year. With 93 assists to her name, Kinley has more than any other libero in the league.

Dunbar is fourth in digs among the Big 12's outside hitters with 169. She trails only Texas Tech's Emily Hill (248) and Michal Schuler (192) and Eleanor Holthaus (182) of Iowa State.

GO-TO GIRL

Outside hitter Dunbar has proven herself as OU's go-to hitter this season with 762 total attempts. The graduate transfer leads the team in kills with 238, 44 ahead of the next closest player in Sarah Sanders (194).

Dunbar has registered double-digit kills in 12 of OU's 19 matches. She has tallied 15 or more kills in six of those contests, most recently against Kansas State when she put away 15. Dunbar is No. 5 in the Big 12 in total kills (238) and kills per set (3.4). The Seabrook, Texas, native has been responsible for 270 total points this season, placing her fifth among league players. Her 3.86 points per set average ranks fifth in the Big 12.

A seasoned all-around player, Dunbar has also racked up 169 digs for the fourth-most by a Sooner this season. Dunbar is OU's only non-defensive specialist to have eclipsed 100 digs in 2019.

QUICK HITS

• The Sooners have sole possession of third in the Big 12 with a 6-3 record against the league.
• Oklahoma checks in at No. 25 in the latest NCAA RPI rankings.
• OU earned the 800th program win as it defeated Kansas 3-1 in Norman on Oct. 5.
• Oklahoma has an 8-1 record inside McCasland Field House.
• The Sooners are undefeated (5-0) in four-set matches and 6-2 in five-set matches.

SCOUTING REPORT

KANSAS

The Jayhawks enter Saturday's contest at 6-12 overall and 2-6 against the Big 12. In its last outing, Kansas was swept by No. 4 Texas at home.

OU won the first meeting with the Jayhawks this season, topping Kansas 3-1 in Norman to earn the 800th win in program history.

UP NEXT

The Sooners return to McCasland Field House Friday, Nov. 8 for a Red River rematch with Texas.

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