OU Hosts Top-Ranked Texas Friday

NORMAN – Friday's home contest with No. 1 Texas is set for a 6 p.m. CT start. The match will be broadcast on Fox Sports Oklahoma with Chad McKee on play-by-play, Kelly Files as the color commentator and Meg McDonald on the sidelines.

Live stats will be available at oustats.com.

FRIDAY STORYLINES

LAST TIME OUT

OU went 1-1 on the weekend, falling to No. 3 Baylor, 3-2, in Norman before sweeping Kansas in Lawrence. After giving up the first set against Baylor, the Sooners stormed back to take the next two. The Bears would ultimately take the match, 24-26, 25-15, 31-29, 25-15, 12-15.

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 took charge at the net as she got in on all but three blocks, tallying a season-high 10 in the contest.

The OU defense dominated at Kansas as the Sooners came out on top 26-24, 25-19, 25-20 for their second conference sweep. OU held Kansas to a .076 hitting percentage, the second lowest by an opponent this season.

The Sooners put on a show, swinging .255 with 45 kills in the contest. Ashlynn Dunbar led the team with 13, while Paige Anderson and Sarah Maras each chipped in 10. Setter Kylee McLaughlin picked up a double-double, dishing out 37 assists while adding 10 digs.

RPI ON THE RISE

OU checked in at No. 25 in this week's RPI release.The Sooners have six wins over top-100 RPI teams: No. 36 Iowa State; No. 49 Arizona State; No. 54 SMU; No. 64 Georgia Tech; No. 65 Texas Tech; No. 85 Yale and No. 91 Indiana. OU ranks third in the Big 12 behind AVCA and RPI top-five teams Texas and Baylor.

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 (1398), digs per set (16.45), total blocks (206), blocks per set (2.42) and opponent hitting percentage (.170).

The Sooners are first in total digs, amassing 1398. OU also leads the league in digs per set with a 16.45 average. OU leads the league in total blocks with 206, while the Sooners are fourth in blocks per set with 2.42. Oklahoma has held its opponents to a .170 hitting percentage to rank second among Big 12 schools. OU is 12-1 when holding opponents to .100-.199 hitting and 2-0 when keeping them to .000-.099.

Individually, Keyton Kinley leads all Big 12 players in digs (398) and digs per set (5.17). 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 first in total blocks (99) and blocks per set (1.34).

DOUBLE-DOUBLES EVERYWHERE

Multiple Sooners have registered multiple double-doubles this season as setter Kylee McLaughlin has 11 and Ashlynn Dunbar has recorded nine. Dunbar and McLaughlin each recorded a double-double over the week.

Dunbar had 18 kills and 12 digs against Baylor and McLaughlin notched 37 assists and 10 digs at Kansas. Two OU players had double-doubles in the Tech contest as Dunbar had 11 kills and 14 digs and McLaughlin had 48 assists to go with 16 digs.

OU is 14-2 in contests where one player records a double-double, with the losses coming at Texas A&M on Sept. 17 as Dunbar had 19 kills and 12 digs and against Baylor on Oct. 30 when Dunbar had 18 kills and 12 digs. 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 Kylee McLaughlin, libero Keyton Kinley and outside hitter Ashlynn Dunbar have done it all for the Sooners, taking on roles outside their positions.

An offensive threat, McLaughlin ranks second among setters with kills in the Big 12 conference with 62 total. She also has 213 digs on the year.

With 99 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 174. She trails only Texas Tech's Emily Hill (248) and Michal Schuler (198) and Eleanor Holthaus (187) of Iowa State.

GO-TO GIRL

Outside hitter Ashlynn Dunbar has proven herself as OU's go-to hitter this season with 793 total attempts. The graduate transfer leads the team in kills with 251, 44 ahead of the next closest player, Sarah Sanders (207).

Dunbar has registered double-digit kills in 14 of OU's 21 matches. She has tallied 15 or more kills in seven of those contests, most recently against Kansas when she put away 13.
Dunbar is No. 4 in the Big 12 in total kills (251) and No. 5 in kills per set (3.44). The Seabrook, Texas, native has been responsible for 287.5 total points this season, placing her fourth among league players. Her 3.94 points per set average ranks fifth in the Big 12.

A seasoned all-around player, Dunbar has also racked up 174 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 7-3 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 dropped just one match at home, compiling 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.
Juniors Kylee McLaughlin and Keyton Kinley were named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team. Both players were unanimous selections after earning All-Big 12 first team honors in 2018.

SCOUTING REPORT

TEXAS

The Longhorns enter Wednesday's contest at 15-2 overall and 10-0 against the Big 12. Texas is 5-2 on the road with losses coming at then No. 1 Stanford and Rice. In its last competition, Texas defeated West Virginia, 3-0. Texas is the only school this season to defeat Baylor, earning a 3-0 victory on Oct. 23.

UP NEXT

The Sooners will host Texas Tech inside McCasland Field House Wednesday, Nov. 13, at 7 p.m. CT.

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