KISSIMMEE, Florida - Senior libero Kaitlyn Lucy set a new NCAA Division II record for digs in a single season as Oklahoma Baptist defeated second-seeded Southern Wesleyan 3-1 Friday night in the NCCAA Volleyball National Semi-Final to advance to the championship.
The fourth-seeded Lady Bison rolled to a 2-0 lead before the Warriors took set three to extend the match. OBU advanced after winning the fourth set to solidify the win (25-20, 25-18, 22-25, 25-21) at the Kissimmee Civic Center.After falling behind by as many as seven points in the final set, the Lady Bison mounted a comeback to even up the score at 16-16. The Lady Bison outscored the Warriors 9-5 down the stretch to punch their ticket to the final.Lucy, a native of Midlothian, Texas, entered the match needing only 11 digs to tie Caitlyn Dean's record of 932 (Tusculum, 2012) under the current rules format and finished with 39 to set a new NCAA Division II standard.
"Kaitlyn is a phenomenal player and an even better person. I am so proud of her. She works extremely hard and has been committed to being the best player she could be the entire time she has been at OBU. I am so excited her hard work is paying off, and I am very proud," said Lady Bison head coach
Anna Howle.
Three OBU players finished with double-digit kills and the Lady Bison attacked with a .208 hitting percentage as a team, including a .311 mark in the fourth set.
Priscila Mendes paced OBU with 15 kills,
Carey Strong and Kynnedy Myers each posted a double-double, and
Cat Roth added 10 kills. Strong finished with 12 kills and 19 digs while Myers had 45 assists to go with 12 digs.
The battle at the net was won by the Lady Bison, as OBU finished with 12 total blocks to just five for the Warriors. Freshman
Nicole Fleitman matched her season high with eight block assists and also had a solo block.
Southern Wesleyan falls to 22-8 with the loss and is eliminated from the championship.
OBU, now 27-12, will face the winner of the Colorado Christian and Indiana Wesleyan match on Saturday at 11 a.m. Central in the winner-take-all championship match.
