TYLER, Texas –
Taneyah Brown led all players with 16 kills as the No.12-ranked Oklahoma Baptist Bison ran their win streak to five after a 3-0 decision against Ferris State on Friday afternoon at UT-Tyler's Dakota's Patriot Classic.
Brown's 16 kills were a season high.
Avery Hellmuth delivered another strong showing by totaling nine kills and a .400 attack percentage from her middle blocker position.
Audrey Poupard chipped in with seven kills while defensively,
Diana Carranza notched 14 digs.
Also aiding the squad were
Kaelyn Ina who had 11 digs and
Kaylee Buell who contributed 11 digs and 28 assists. As a team, OBU's defensive effort was strong again, holding Ferris State to its second-lowest attack percentage this season (.179)
The opening set saw OBU (5-1) rally back to win 27-25. Following a Samantha Hermann block on Poupard, the Bison trailed 22-20. In the next few sequences, kills from Brown and Hellmuth, as well as an error by FSU, gave Oklahoma Baptist the lead. The two squads traded points after that before a
Rylen Moore kill and another error by the Bulldogs, with the score tied at 25, pushed the Bison ahead for good.
Midway through the second stanza, the Bison reeled off seven straight to go in front. Poupard started the stretch with a kill before a
Taryn Weber block moved the scoreboard to 19-13, Bison. FSU never recovered after that as OBU won, 25-18. The Bison's offense was solid in the set, hitting a match-high .351 with 19 kills.
In the third, Ferris State had a few leads including 4-0, 18-15 and 21-19. But on each occasion, OBU rallied. The last of those saw the green and gold secure its second sweep of the day. Trailing by two, the Bison scored six of the last seven points to prevail. Brown tied the match at 21 with a kill before blocks by Weber and Poupard moved the tally to 24-22.
Malia Leatherland then closed the game with an ace.
Tomorrow, Oklahoma Baptist will square off with West Alabama at 10 a.m.
