ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Oklahoma City University picked up two volleyball wins in the Lindenwood Invitational on Saturday at the Robert F. Hyland Performance Center.
The Stars (15-9) defeated Bryan (Tenn.) 27-25, 20-25, 25-12, 25-17 and Union (Tenn.) 25-18, 25-18, 25-14.
Against Union, Xiaoting Ma, a senior from Dalian, China, compiled a team-high 16 kills to go with nine digs for OCU. Raissa Santos, a junior from Sao Paulo, Brazil, picked up 11 kills and 18 digs, while Danielle Robison, a freshman from Dallas, amassed 42 assists and six digs.
Taylor Rowton contributed eight kills and two blocks, and Alex Benbrook had seven kills and three blocks for the Stars.
OCU pulled away from Union with three consecutive first-set points. Rowton rejected a Union attack to start the OCU spree. Anna Gentry dropped in an ace to put OCU ahead 22-17.
In the second set, the Stars used a 5-0 run to create a 19-13 advantage. Santos started the run with a kill, and Ma capped the Stars splurge with a kill.
In the third, OCU had an 8-0 run to surge ahead 15-5. Rowton sparked OCU's run with a kill. Benbrook added a kill, and Ma pounded down two kills in that span. Rowton's kill finished off OCU's win.
Against Bryan, Ma knocked down 18 kills in 24 attacks while picking up 14 digs. Ma led OCU with a .750 hitting percentage, while the Stars posted a .316 hitting percentage as a team.
Benbrook added 15 kills and two solo blocks, while Santos recorded 11 kills and 23 digs. Torrie Flynn had 10 kills and two blocks.
Robison handed out 55 assists to go with six digs. Victoria Cross racked up a season-high 26 digs, and Gentry contributed nine digs and three aces.
OCU withstood a late Bryan charge to take the first set. Allison Young had a kill to cut Bryan's deficit to 24-23, then Kaylan Dilts and Carolyn Evans combined a block to tie the set. Evans' kill gave Bryan set point.
Vicky Murphy answered for OCU with a kill, then Rowton notched a solo block to bring up set point at 26-25. Chelsea Breaden had a miscue for Bryan to give OCU the set.
OCU reeled off a 7-0 run en route to the third-set win. The Stars scored the final five points of the match. Ma's kill put OCU up 21-17, then Benbrook had a kill. Gentry launched an ace after that.
Benbrook's solo block brought up match point, then Gentry laid down another ace to finish the victory.
The Stars face John Brown (Ark.) at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Abe Lemons Arena.
OCU-Bryan Stats
OCU-Union Stats
