Non-Conference Finale Set for Saturday

NORMAN – The Oklahoma volleyball team closes out the nonconference slate Saturday as it welcomes SMU to McCasland Field House. The clash between the Sooners and the Mustangs is set for a 4 p.m. CT start.

The match will be broadcast on Fox Sports Oklahoma Plus with Chad McKee on play-by-play, Kelly Files as color commentator and Meg McDonald on the sidelines. The contest will also be broadcast on KREF radio in Norman with Chris Plank on the call.

Free sunglasses will be provided for the first 200 fans in attendance. The Sooners have teamed up with Whataburger to fight hunger in the community with a peanut butter and jelly drive. Fans who bring a jar of peanut butter or jelly will receive a coupon for a free honey butter chicken biscuit from Whataburger.

GAMEDAY STORYLINES

LAST TIME OUT

OU dropped its first contest in seven matches Tuesday in a 3-2 decision at Texas A&M. The Aggies prevailed 17-25, 25-20, 25-22, 20-25, 15-12, to hand OU its first loss in a five-set match this season. The Sooners were previously undefeated in matches that went to fifth after winning five of those contests, with four coming consecutively.

Texas A&M out-killed OU 65-57 in the contest, but the Sooners held A&M to a .207 hitting percentage while swinging .225. Defensively, OU led in blocks with 10 while the Aggies narrowly edged OU in digs 69-64.

Ashlynn Dunbar led the way for the Sooners with her first double-double at OU, putting down 19 kills while adding 12 digs. Dunbar hit a .259 clip, good for her best hitting percentage this season.

MCDOUBLE

Setter Kylee McLaughlin has recorded a double-double in seven of OU's ten contests this season. During the Nike Invite, McLaughlin 47 assists and 14 digs against Arizona State; 37 assists and 12 digs against Louisiana; and 46 assists to go with 13 digs against Georgia Tech.

McLaughlin ranks second on the team in digs with 119, second only to libero Keyton Kinley, who has 169 on the year. The junior notched 14 double-doubles last season and is on track to surpass that mark.

A dual threat, McLaughlin has had four our more kills in the last five matches, including seven in three sets against Louisiana. McLaughlin had four against Texas A&M.

ANDERSON'S GOT AMMO

Junior middle blocker Paige Anderson has come into her own as an attacker this season. As a sophomore in 2018, she had six performances with double-digit kills all season; through 10 matches in 2019, she has matched that number.

Anderson is on a five-game streak with kills in double figures, including a season-high 17 against Georgia Tech at the Nike Invitational for a new career best.

Anderson went off during the Nike Invitational, tallying a team-high 38 kills over the weekend on a .408 clip en route to tournament MVP honors. The junior had 11 kills against Louisiana for a .400 clip, then followed that performance up with 17 kills on a .538 clip in the Georgia Tech contest to mark the second time this season she's hit above .500 (Anderson had a .667 hitting percentage against Oregon State).

DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS

Through three weeks of the season, OU's defense leads the Big 12 conference in both digs (688) and digs per set (16.00). The next closest school is Texas Tech with 633 digs on the year.

OU is second in opponent hitting percentage, holding other teams to .177. The Sooners are 7-0 when holding opponents to .100 to .199.

The 2018 Big 12 Libero of the Year Kinley is the current conference leader in digs with 185 to her name. She also leads the league in digs per set with 5.29. The next closest defender (Alexa Hasting of West Virginia) has 142 digs to her name.

BATTING .500

Senior middle blocker Brianna Kadiku hit a .500 clip at Texas A&M, putting down 10 kills on 16 attempts with just two errors. Her .500 hitting percentage at Texas A&M is a season-best for Kadiku and her 10 kills were good for her third double-digit kills performance this season.

The Texas A&M match marked the fourth time this season that Kadiku hit above .400; the senior's previous high was .462 at Yale to go with .455 against Louisiana and .423 against Arizona State.

NATION'S BEST

Two Sooners rank in the top 30 among Division I volleyball players in three different statistical categories. Kinley currently ranks 26^th in digs per set with 5.29. Her 185 total digs so far this season place her 30^th nationally.

McLaughlin is sixth in the NCAA in total assists with 418 and is the only Big 12 player in the top 15.

QUICK HITS

The Sooners are undefeated (3-0) inside McCasland Field House.
OU is 6-1 in the month of September.
OU is 3-1 on Saturdays.

SCOUTING REPORT

SMU

The Mustangs enter the contest at 7-2 overall. In its last competition, SMU swept TCU 3-0 in Dallas, 25-20, 25-20, 25-18. The Mustangs dominated, out-killing TCU 46-28 on a .229 clip while holding the Horned Frogs to .106.

All but one of SMU's victories this season have come as sweeps; the Mustangs put away Bradley, UTSA, Incarnate Word, Dayton, Missouri State and TCU in three sets while holding on for a 3-2 win over Oral Roberts.

SMU leads the all-time series with OU 3-2. The last meeting between the squads was in 2014 in Dallas, where the Mustangs prevailed 3-2. OU's two wins over SMU both came in Norman with the Sooners sweeping those back-to-back matches in 2010 and 2011.

UP NEXT

The Sooners open Big 12 play on Sept. 25 against TCU at home. The match is set for an 8 p.m. CT start and will air live on ESPNU.

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

Non-Conference Finale Set for Saturday