LUBBOCK, Texas – Oklahoma City University faces Oklahoma Baptist in the Sooner Athletic Conference volleyball tournament at 2 p.m. Friday at the Rip Griffin Center.
The Stars finished second in the conference at 18-19, 9-5 in the SAC. OCU went 12-5 down the stretch with a win over Columbia (Mo.), at the time the fourth-ranked team in the NAIA.
OCU went 9-14 in non-conference play while facing the toughest schedule in program history. The Stars faced seven ranked opponents during the season, beating three of them.
All nine of OCU's conference victories came in three sets each.
“Playing a tougher non-conference schedule helped us step up our game in conference,” OCU coach Jen Gomez said. “Going from two setters to one setter on the court at a time helped our consistency. A lot of people wouldn't have thought we would finish second in the conference. Hopefully that schedule prepared us well for the postseason.”
Xiaoting Ma, a junior from Dalian, China, leads OCU with 3.53 kills a set, an average that went up to 4.19 kills per set in conference play. Ma added 2.80 digs, 0.46 blocks and 0.12 aces for 3.92 points a set.
Alex Benbrook, a sophomore from Enid, Okla., recorded 2.15 kills and 0.90 blocks for 2.71 points a set. Benbrook led the SAC with 113 blocks and ranked second in blocks per set.
Shelbey Veselka, a junior from Boerne, Texas, stands fifth in the SAC with 4.14 digs a set and second with 0.34 aces a set. Samantha Ball, a sophomore from Edmond, Okla., averages 7.90 assists a set, 9.76 assists in SAC play.
OCU beat Oklahoma Baptist in three sets twice during the season. The Stars knocked off Oklahoma Baptist after the Lady Bison had risen to No. 21 in the NAIA ratings.
The SAC Tournament champion advances to the NAIA Championships Opening Round on Nov. 21.
“It will be a tough match,” Gomez said. “They will just as fired up as we will be. Anything can happen in this tournament.”
Host Lubbock Christian (Texas) will offer live video and live stats of each of the matches in the tournament. Click here for the video and here for the live stats.
Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament
At Lubbock, Texas
Rip Griffin Center
Friday's Matches
No. 5 Wayland Baptist (Texas) vs. No. 4 Southern Nazarene, 11:30 a.m.
No. 3 Oklahoma Baptist vs. No. 2 Oklahoma City, 2 p.m.
SNU-WBU winner vs. No. 1 Lubbock Christian (Texas), 4:30 p.m.
Saturday's Match
Championship, 2 p.m.
