PENSACOLA, Fla. – Oklahoma Baptist swept Mississippi College on Saturday and in the process earned its first win of the 2023 season.
Key Leaders
- MB Avery Hellmuth: Notched 10 kills and hit an efficient .381.
- MB Jill Leslie: Also tallied 10 kills with a .588 attack percentage.
- L Maci Langford: Registered a season-high 24 digs.
- S Rylee Martin: Posted a match-best 21 assists.
- Of note, Martin and Emily Boyer combined for 39 assists and had just one serve error as the team hit its best percentage of the year: .323
First Set
A topsy-turvy opening stanza, which featured seven ties and five lead changes, saw the green and gold win 25-21. OBU hit .407 this set and got four kills apiece from Hellmuth and Leslie. Holding a 9-8 advantage, the Bison reeled off a 7-2 stretch to go up 16-10. Five of those seven points came courtesy of MC error.
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Second Set
Before the Choctaw rallied midway through the second, the Bison started hot seizing a 5-1 lead. Hellmuth had two of those points. However, the quick start was erased when MC tied the set at 16. After that, freshman
Allie Stricker notched a kill and block assist to boost OBU back up two (18-16). Mississippi College never tied it again after that as Hellmuth got the 25th point of the set with another kill.
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Third Set
The latter stages of the third were pressure-packed. With the scoreboard reading 21-all,
Jenna West and
Lauren Safrit came up with some big points. West's service ace broke the tie before Safrit finished off a Boyer pass to boost the Bison lead to 23-21. MC's Julia Sumrall got her team to within one, 24-23, after that with a kill. However, on the ensuing serve, the Choctaw erred and pushed OBU into the win column.
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On the Horizon
Six days from now on Sept. 8, the Bison will venture to the Washburn Invitational in Topeka, Kansas. They'll play William Jewell (Mo.) and host Ichabods that day.
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