Posted: Oct 01, 2022
NORMAN – The Oklahoma volleyball team won its first Big 12 match of the season, sweeping West Virginia, 3-0, Saturday afternoon inside McCasland Field House.
The Sooners took the match in straight-sets, 25-20, 25-18, 25-20. OU hit .260 for the match while holding WVU to a .188 hitting percentage. OU led in five of six major statistical categories including points (55-48), kills (42-34), service aces (9-3), assists (39-33) and digs (30-27).
This marked the first win against WVU since Nov. 19, 2020, and the first sweep since Nov. 22, 2019, which was held in McCasland. Under head coach Lindsey Gray-Walton, OU is now 6-3 overall against WVU. The Sooners are 18-4 all-time against the Mountaineers and 10-1 at home.
Sophomore Megan Wilson led the offense with her seventh-straight match in double-digit kills – 13 kills on a .370 clip with just three errors. Wilson's five service aces moved her to 35 aces on the season, putting her third in the record books.
Freshman trio – Alexis Shelton, Taylor Preston and Morgan Perkins – all chipped in nine, seven and six kills, respectively. Sophomore Payton Chamberlain added 31 assists and six digs, while sophomore Callie Kemohah led the defense with nine digs.
WVU claimed the first point of the first set, but OU made it a back-and-forth battle until the Sooners went on a five-point run before a WVU timeout to make the score 7-2. Out of the break, the Sooners went on a 4-0 scoring run (12-2) after Wilson posted back-to-back services aces and WVU's Bailey Miller posted a pair of attack errors to force another Mountaineer timeout. WVU tried to claw their way back with a five-point run that forced an Oklahoma timeout, where the Sooners still led 14-8. A pair of service aces from WVU's Adrian Ell brought the Mountaineers within two of the Sooners, 15-13. After OU's second timeout, the Sooners went on a 3-0 run to extend the lead 18-13. OU would go on to earn a dominate first set victory over the Mountaineers, 25-20.
After the Mountaineers came out strong to take the first point of the second set, OU immediately responded with three kills in five plays to strengthen its lead 5-1. At one point, the Sooners extended their lead by six (11-5) after a trio of kills from Perkins, including two that were back-to-back. Going into the media timeout, the Sooners had a substantial, 15-7, lead. Out of the break, the Mountaineers went on a 3-0 run to make the score, 15-10. Wilson added back-to-back kills to extend OU's lead 18-11, forcing a WVU timeout. After the break, the Mountaineers had to use another timeout after graduate student Adria Oliver added a kill to extend the Sooners lead, 23-15. OU would go on to take the second set, 25-18.
In the third and final set, WVU had a fast 8-4 start after several attack errors from OU. The Sooners chipped away at WVU's lead to eventually knot the score 12-12. OU had its first lead of the day after a kill from Oliver to make the score 13-12. The Sooners would have a one-point lead over the Mountaineers (15-14) going into the media timeout. After the break, WVU would take back the lead after a pair of kills, but Shelton and graduate student Savannah Davison put the Sooners back on top, 18-16, with a kill each. Back to-back kills for Wilson and OU's three-point lead (22-19) forced a WVU timeout. Coming out of the break, the Mountaineers had another attack error to force their final timeout. The Sooners took the final set, 25-20, to win their first conference match on the season.
The Sooners return to the Lone Star State to face No. 13 Baylor Wednesday, Oct. 5. In their second primetime spot for conference play, the match will air on ESPNU at 8 p.m. CT.
The Sooners took the match in straight-sets, 25-20, 25-18, 25-20. OU hit .260 for the match while holding WVU to a .188 hitting percentage. OU led in five of six major statistical categories including points (55-48), kills (42-34), service aces (9-3), assists (39-33) and digs (30-27).
This marked the first win against WVU since Nov. 19, 2020, and the first sweep since Nov. 22, 2019, which was held in McCasland. Under head coach Lindsey Gray-Walton, OU is now 6-3 overall against WVU. The Sooners are 18-4 all-time against the Mountaineers and 10-1 at home.
Sophomore Megan Wilson led the offense with her seventh-straight match in double-digit kills – 13 kills on a .370 clip with just three errors. Wilson's five service aces moved her to 35 aces on the season, putting her third in the record books.
Freshman trio – Alexis Shelton, Taylor Preston and Morgan Perkins – all chipped in nine, seven and six kills, respectively. Sophomore Payton Chamberlain added 31 assists and six digs, while sophomore Callie Kemohah led the defense with nine digs.
After the Mountaineers came out strong to take the first point of the second set, OU immediately responded with three kills in five plays to strengthen its lead 5-1. At one point, the Sooners extended their lead by six (11-5) after a trio of kills from Perkins, including two that were back-to-back. Going into the media timeout, the Sooners had a substantial, 15-7, lead. Out of the break, the Mountaineers went on a 3-0 run to make the score, 15-10. Wilson added back-to-back kills to extend OU's lead 18-11, forcing a WVU timeout. After the break, the Mountaineers had to use another timeout after graduate student Adria Oliver added a kill to extend the Sooners lead, 23-15. OU would go on to take the second set, 25-18.
In the third and final set, WVU had a fast 8-4 start after several attack errors from OU. The Sooners chipped away at WVU's lead to eventually knot the score 12-12. OU had its first lead of the day after a kill from Oliver to make the score 13-12. The Sooners would have a one-point lead over the Mountaineers (15-14) going into the media timeout. After the break, WVU would take back the lead after a pair of kills, but Shelton and graduate student Savannah Davison put the Sooners back on top, 18-16, with a kill each. Back to-back kills for Wilson and OU's three-point lead (22-19) forced a WVU timeout. Coming out of the break, the Mountaineers had another attack error to force their final timeout. The Sooners took the final set, 25-20, to win their first conference match on the season.
