ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Oklahoma City University toppled two ranked foes Saturday in the Lindenwood Classic, besting Lindenwood (Mo.) 25-19, 25-12, 25-20 and edging Columbia (Mo.) 18-25, 25-20, 25-23, 13-25, 16-14 at the Robert H. Hyland Performance Arena.

The Stars (14-15) notched their fourth and fifth wins ever over ranked NAIA volleyball opponents. No. 22 Lindenwood leads the Heart of America Athletic Conference at 7-0, while fourth-ranked Columbia became OCU's highest-ranked victim ever.

OCU knocked off 19th-ranked Texas-Brownsville on Aug. 22, 2008 for the previous highest-ranked opponent the Stars had beaten.

“I am so very proud of our team,” OCU coach Jen Gomez said. “We showed up to play. We stepped up our blocking immensely. Our passing was much better, and our defense slowed them down. We pushed the tempo, and I liked that.”

Against Columbia, Lindsay Hansen, a senior from Moore, Okla., came up with a career-high 17 kills to go with three blocks to lead OCU. Xiaoting Ma, a junior from Dalian, China, added 14 kills, 14 digs and two blocks.

Samantha Ball, a sophomore from Edmond, Okla., rang up 49 assists and picked up eight digs for the Stars. Alex Benbrook, a sophomore from Enid, Okla., recorded 10 kills and two blocks, and Adrienne Tillery, a junior from Carthage, Texas, chipped in eight kills and four blocks.

Shelbey Veselka, a junior from Boerne, Texas, had a team-high 15 digs, and Victoria Cross, a sophomore from Oklahoma City, added 12 digs.

In the fifth set, OCU led 6-4 after Jeannee Campbell's kill and 11-9 after Benbrook's kill. Columbia forged 11-11, 13-13 and 14-14 ties in the fifth set.

Hansen gave OCU match point at 15-14 with a kill, then Ma clinched the victory by knocking down a kill.

In the third set, OCU built a 19-13 advantage, but Columbia cut its deficit to 23-22. Ma gave OCU set point with a kill. Columbia responded with Cate Eckhart's kill, but Benbrook answered with a kill to win the third set for the Stars.

Against Lindenwood, Ma led the Stars with 11 kills and five blocks. Campbell added 10 kills and two blocks, while Shelbey Veselka picked up 15 digs and two aces.

Ball had 32 assists, 10 digs, three aces and three blocks, and Benbrook added eight kills and five blocks. OCU recorded a season-high 11½ blocks.

Ma gave the Stars a 9-4 third-set lead with a kill. Lindenwood responded and tied the set 16-16, but OCU scored the next two points to take the lead for good. Ball and Benbrook teamed on a block to give the Stars an 18-16 edge.

OCU scored four points in a row to get to set point. Hansen and Campbell knocked down back-to-back kills as the Stars built a 24-18 advantage.

Campbell put away the match with a kill.

OCU meets Arkansas-Fort Smith at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Fort Smith, Ark.
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