Sooners Fall to Cyclones in Norman

Saturday, October 15

Norman

6 p.m.

University of Oklahoma

11-7,1-5Big 12

Iowa State

12-7,4-2Big 12

Iowa St.

Oklahoma

Photo by: Ty Russell

October 15, 2022 | Volleyball

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NORMAN – The Oklahoma volleyball team dropped a four-set match to Iowa State, 3-1, Saturday night inside McCasland Field House.

The Cyclones took the match, 22-25, 25-22, 25-15, 25-21, inside McCasland Field House. Iowa State led OU in all of the major statistical categories. The Sooners fell to 11-7 overall and 1-5 in Big 12 play while the Cyclones improved to 12-7 and 4-2 in league play.

"I just think that Iowa State's brand of volleyball is always to compete really hard with a relentless pursuit to compete on defense and how they just attack every point," head coach Lindsey Gray-Walton said. "We fought at times, but we couldn't consistently compete for the whole match."

Sophomore Megan Wilson and graduate student Savannah Davison led the offense with 15 kills apiece. Defensively, Wilson led the way with a career-high seven blocks, while junior Kelsey Carrington came off the bench with six blocks.

Sophomore libero Callie Kemohah posted 10 digs, while Davison was close behind with nine and sophomore Payton Chamberlain with eight. Chamberlain also led the Sooners with 39 assists.

Iowa State came out strong in the first set, leading 5-2, before OU went on a 4-0 run to take its first lead of the match, 6-5. The Sooners and Cyclones had a back-and-forth battle with OU holding a two-point lead after a Davison kill before the media timeout. Iowa State brought the score within one, 22-21, after an attack error from Wilson. Davison closed out the set with a kill to give the Sooners the opening set, 25-22. Wilson ended the first set with seven kills on a .600 hitting percentage.

In the second set, the Sooners jumped out to a 7-2 lead forcing the Cyclones to call a timeout. OU continued their dominance with a 14-8 lead after a 4-0 run due to kills from Wilson and Davison, along with a service ace from freshman Chloe Kaminski, causing Iowa State to use another timeout. After the break, the Cyclones pulled within one before forcing a Sooners timeout. Davison came out swinging with back-to-back kills, while Oliver added a kill for an OU three-point run, 18-15. Iowa State tied it up, 19-19, to force a second OU timeout. The Sooners sealed the deal, 25-22.

The Sooners had another strong start, leading 6-5, before the Cyclones tied the match 6-6 in the third set. The momentum swung in favor of Iowa State after a 4-0 run, leading 11-7. Before the media timeout, the Cyclones went on three-point run to continue its lead, 15-9. After the media timeout, the Cyclones extended the lead by seven, forcing an OU timeout. The Cyclones closed out the set on a 4-0 run to end the set, 25-15.

In set four, the Sooners went on a 3-0 run early after kills from Wilson and Davison. OU continued to build off of its quick start, leading 10-6 at one point. The teams were tied at 12-all, before Iowa State flipped the momentum with a 3-0 scoring run to take a two-point lead heading into the media timeout. After the break, the Sooners knotted the set, 16-16, before the Cyclones went on a 3-0 run to force an OU timeout. Iowa State extended its lead by four, 22-18 forcing a final Sooners timeout. The Cyclones closed out the set to win the match and final set, 25-21.

"We're not completely healthy and that's no excuse, but that's something where we'll be excited to get everybody back in uniform come Wednesday and just be able to have another home court advantage," Gray-Walton noted. "I love the crowd tonight! I think they can even be rowdier if they want, but we have to give them a reason to be that way."

The Sooners will return to McCasland Field House to host Kansas State at 6 p.m. Wednesday before heading on the road for their fifth trip to the Lone Star State where they face TCU at 12:30 p.m. Friday in Fort Worth, Texas.