Sooners Sweep Nike Invitational

Saturday, September 14

Norman

11:00 a.m.

University of Oklahoma

6-2

Louisiana

3-6

Louisiana

Oklahoma

September 14, 2019 | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

NORMAN – The Oklahoma volleyball team capped off the Nike Invitational with a pair of wins over Louisiana (3-0) and Georgia Tech (3-1) Saturday.

OU improves to 7-2 on the season and pushed its winning streak to six matches.

"I think our serve pass and defense showed up again," said head coach Lindsey Gray-Walton. "I think our team did a great job in the turn-around to make the adjustments necessary in the scouting report against our opponents to allow us to have the wins today."

OU 3, Louisiana 0

To open play on Saturday, the Sooners won their fifth consecutive match and earned their first sweep of the season taking down Louisiana, 25-19, 25-21, 25-19.

The Sooners racked up 49 kills and swung a three-set match season-high .265 while holding Louisiana to .169 on 37 kills. Paige Anderson led the way with 11 kills on a .400 clip with Kylee McLaughlin adding seven while swinging .500.

Defensively, Keyton Kinley led the Sooners in digs with 22. McLaughlin chipped in 12 with Ashlynn Dunbar adding 10. OU put up 10 blocks in the contest.

Louisiana jumped out to early leads in all three games, but the Sooners would bring each game to a tie at 15-all before pulling ahead for good. OU ended set one on a 10-4 run, hitting .348 in the set. In set two, the teams traded points from 14-14 to 19-all before OU finished on a 6-2 run to clinch the set. Louisiana would jump out to a quick start in set three, taking a 14-6 lead. The Sooners dominated down the stretch going on a 19-5 run to earn the sweep.

OU 3, Georgia Tech 1

The Sooners took down the Yellow Jackets 25-23, 25-23, 23-25, 25-16 in the second contest of the day. OU hit .269 on 60 kills in the match while holding Georgia Tech to 53 on a .191 clip.

Anderson once again had the team-high in kills with 17 on a .538 attack percentage. Two more Sooners added kills in double digits with Ashlynn Dunbar putting down 12 and Sarah Sanders swinging for 11.

For the seventh straight match, McLaughlin recorded a double-double, this time with 46 assists to go with 13 digs. The junior also added four kills of her own.

Kinley led the match in digs with 19, while Dunbar was not far behind with 17 to her name. Johnson chipped in 11 and recorded two service aces on the night.

Oklahoma put up 11 blocks to match its season-high. Brianna Kadiku led the charge at the net, accounting for six blocks.

A tight first and second set saw ties all the way up to 22-all before the Sooners gained separation to win both 25-23. Georgia Tech stormed back to take set three 25-23 and force a fourth. OU dominated the final set, using an 11-point run for a commanding lead. The Sooners closed out the match on a 7-2 run to earn a win over the Yellow Jackets.

"It's so cool," said Gray-Walton of playing her alma mater. "My own strength coach and athletic trainer, that kept me mobile for four years, were across the bench, that's awesome. That place made me as a competitor and who I am in my student-athlete experience and those memories that I have and hold. That place is very special. It's pretty cool to see that come full circle and I always love as a competitor getting that W."

Three Sooners Named All-Tournament, Anderson MVP

McLaughlin and Sanders earned All-Tournament recognition, while Paige Anderson was named the most valuable player at the Nike Invitational. McLaughlin dished out 130 assists on the weekend, while Sanders racked up 35 kills. Anderson had 38 on an impressive .408 clip.

Up Next

OU will play its final non-conference matches of the season against Texas A&M and SMU. The Sooners and Aggies will meet in College Station on Tuesday, Sept. 17, at 6:30 p.m.

OU will host SMU on Saturday, Sept. 21 at 4 p.m. inside McCasland Field House.

For updates, follow @OU_Volleyball on Twitter or like Oklahoma Volleyball on Facebook.