Box Score

OCU's 2020-21 Sooner Athletic Conference volleyball tournament champion

Texas Wesleyan TXWU 18-4

Oklahoma City OCU 14-2

Texas Wesleyan TXWU

18-4

Final

Apr. 10, 2021

Oklahoma City OCU

14-2

Set Scores
Team	1	2	3	4	F
Texas Wesleyan TXWU	25	18	18	22	(1)
Oklahoma City OCU	18	25	25	25	(3)

Game Recap: Volleyball | 4/10/2021 8:34:00 PM

OCU earns fifth consecutive SAC Tournament crown

No. 21 Stars reach NAIA Championships for sixth time

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University secured its fifth consecutive Sooner Athletic Conference volleyball tournament championship with an 18-25, 25-18, 25-18, 25-22 win over Texas Wesleyan on Saturday at Abe Lemons Arena.
OCU (14-2) owns each SAC Tournament crown since 2016. Along with the 2010 SAC Tournament championship, Oklahoma City has earned six conference tournament titles. The Stars, ranked 21st in the NAIA, have captured both the SAC regular-season and tournament titles the past five years.
The Stars took their sixth all-time NAIA Championships berth with the conference regular-season championship. The NAIA will announce the national-tournament qualifiers 10 a.m. Monday. National-tournament starts with the NAIA Championship Opening Round on April 17 on campus sites across the nation.
Sophia Salak of OCU became the SAC Tournament most valuable player for the second year in a row. The Stars' Ella Lofton collected all-tournament acclaim.
"I am so proud of this group," OCU coach Kristen Coventon said. "Today's win was a total team effort. We had multiple players step in and make some very big plays when we needed it. There was so much back-and-forth in that match. It was great to see us respond well. We have been working hard to get better, and I'm so happy the girls are seeing the benefits of all the hours we've spend in the gym."
In the second set, Oklahoma City seized a 7-2 lead on Lacy Beeler's back-to-back aces. Beeler chipped in a solo block and a kill to put the Stars on top 19-8.
The Stars erased a 5-1 hole in the third set. OCU unleashed a 9-0 surge to break a 10-10 tie as Isabel Harwell served up three aces.
In the last set, OCU battled back from a 12-6 deficit. The Stars notched three points in a row to go up 22-20 highlighted by Beeler, Salak and Olivia Nutter teaming on a block.
Salak, a junior from McKinney, Texas, rang up 53 assists and seven digs to reach 50 assists for the second consecutive contest, fifth time this season and 10th instance of her career. Salak provided OCU with 13.00 assists, 1.55 digs and 0.45 aces a set during the tournament. She leads the NAIA in average assists (12.18 a set) in 2020-21.
Lofton, a senior from Cedar Park, Texas, spearheaded OCU with 15 kills and 20 digs. She registered her third double-double in a row and a career-high dig total. Lofton averaged 3.45 kills, 4.09 digs, 0.55 blocks and 0.27 aces per set throughout the tournament.
Beeler, a senior from Jenks, Okla., produced 14 kills, 15 digs, four blocks and two aces, while Harwell, a junior from Edmond, Okla., posted 26 digs and four aces for the Stars. Nutter, a junior from Plano, Texas, picked up 11 kills and three blocks, and Caitlin Briggs, a senior from Mustang, Okla., scooped up 14 digs. Kenady Bertling and Catelyn Vargas knocked down eight kills each.
The Stars defeated Texas Wesleyan in the conference tournament title match for the fourth time in a row. Morgan Burns and Bailey Foy of the Rams made the all-tournament team. Texas Wesleyan overcame an 11-7 deficit to win the first set. Texas Wesleyan reeled in the SAC's other automatic national-tournament bid.

Sooner Athletic Conference Volleyball Tournament
At Campus Sites at Highest Seed
Tuesday's Results
Quarterfinals
No. 1 Oklahoma City def. No. 8 Langston, 3-0 (25-16, 25-16, 25-10)
No. 2 Texas Wesleyan def. No. 7 Mid-America Christian, 3-0 (25-11, 25-15, 25-13)
No. 3 Wayland Baptist def. No. 6 Panhandle State, 3-2 (25-21, 28-26, 24-26, 19-25, 15-12)
No. 5 SW Assemblies of God def. No. 4 John Brown, 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-19, 25-22)
At Abe Lemons Arena
Oklahoma City
Friday's Results
Semifinals
Oklahoma City def. Southwestern Assemblies of God, 3-1 (25-16, 25-23, 24-26, 25-14)
Texas Wesleyan def. Wayland Baptist, 3-1 (25-23, 25-23, 22-25, 28-26)
Saturday's Result
Championship
Oklahoma City def. Texas Wesleyan, 3-1 (18-25, 25-18, 25-18, 25-22)

All-Tournament
Morgan Burns, Texas Wesleyan; Bailey Foy, Texas Wesleyan; Ella Lofton, Oklahoma City; Faith Marroquin, SW Assemblies of God; Paxton Patterson, Wayland Baptist.
Most valuable player: Sophia Salak, Oklahoma City.

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