Box Score SHAWNEE – The Bison fell short in the Tuesday evening meeting with the Tigers after a four-set dual saw East Central on top.
In the intense four-frame competition, the Tigers took set one with a 27-25 ending. Set two belonged to OBU with a 25-14 final. ECU went on to take set three at 25-18 and set four at 30-28.
The green and gold amassed 52 kills, 14 blocks, 97 digs, and three aces.
Allie Stricker led the OBU offense with a new career high of 14 kills.
Rylee Unruh tallied 12 kills for the Bison.
Avery Hellmuth,
Karsyn Hunter and Unruh all added an ace for the visiting team.
Jill Leslie was at the helm of the OBU defense with seven total blocks, her most blocks in a single game since the 2022 season. Hellmuth claimed a new season high with six blocks and
Emily Boyer earned a new career high in blocks with five on the evening. Boyer tallied 39 assists.
Lauren Safrit served as the libero for the green and gold with 29 total digs. Hunter added 18 digs for the Bison and Unruh finished with 15 digs.
Set 1
The opening set saw the Bison claim the first point with a kill from Leslie. As the Tigers added a point to the board, Leslie laid down another kill for OBU's second point. The next two points went to the home team, but Unruh started a 3-0 run with a kill followed by a block from Unruh and a kill from
Jh'Kyah Head for a 5-3 lead. A trio of kills from Odalys Gonzales tallied the next three consecutive points for an ECU lead. Unruh kept the Bison in the game with a kill to tie things back up. The remainder of the match saw 11 ties. An error from the Tigers tied things up at 14-14. The home team took the next three points, but OBU came back with the next four consecutive points, consisting of kills from Unruh and Stricker, an ace from Unruh and a block from Hellmuth and Boyer to put the Bison ahead by one. With the green and gold in the lead at 19-18, ECU took the next three points. As the Tigers claimed their 23
rd point with a kill, Unruh kept the set alive with a kill and an error from the home team tied things up at 23-23. The orange and black added another point and OBU answered with a couple of points to take the lead by one. Gonzalez tallied the tying point with a kill at 25-25 and then another pair of kills from the Tigers closed out the set at 27-25.
Set 2
The second frame saw the home team first to the board. Leslie got the ball rolling for the Bison with a pair of kills and an error from ECU to give OBU the lead at 3-1. The next point went to the orange and black, but the Bison kicked things into gear, taking the next five points with kills from Unruh and Leslie and a trio of errors from ECU for an 8-2 lead. As the Tigers tallied their sixth point, the green and gold added another three to extend the lead to 14-6 with kills from Hellmuth and Stricker and another Tiger error. As the home team made their way to point 13 with a kill, Hellmuth brought the Bison to point 21 with a kill. The next two points also went to OBU with an error from the Tigers and a block from Leslie and Boyer for a 10-point lead, 23-13. ECU made their last effort with a kill to bring their total to 14. An error from the orange and black made it set point for OBU and Leslie and Stricker closed out the set with a block for a 25-14 final.
Set 3
Stricker started off set three with a kill to claim the first point of the stanza for OBU. A four-score run for the Tigers saw the home team with a 4-1 lead. Head added the second point for OBU but the orange and black took the next three consecutive points. At 13-7 for the Bison, Stricker came in with a trio of kills and an error from the Tigers concluded a 4-0 run for the green and gold. With a one-point difference at 15-14 in favor of the home team, ECU extended the lead with a three-score run. Hellmuth came in with a kill for the 16
th point. The orange and black took the next four points for a 23-16 lead. Stricker came in with another kill and Leslie and Boyer brought the total to 18 for OBU but the final points went to the home team for a 25-18 finish in favor of the Tigers.
Set 4
Stricker took charge in the fourth set, putting the Bison on the board first with a kill. An error from the Tigers put OBU up 2-0. Each team went on to take two points consecutively for a 4-2 lead for the visitors. Both teams went point for point but a 6-4 lead for OBU flipped after the Tigers took the next three points. An error from the home team and a block from Hellmuth and Stricker retook the lead for the green and gold. With eight ties leading to the 16-16 score, the Tigers took the following couple points for the lead. ECU led 21-19 until the Bison came in and took the next two points for another tie, this time at 21-21. The remainder of the set saw seven ties and five lead changes. The final points for the green and gold came from Head with a pair of kills for a 28-27 score in favor of OBU. Gonzalez took the next three points for the orange and black to seal the deal on the set at 30-28 and the match at 3-1.
The Bison will be back in action at home Thursday evening for a Pink Out night against NWOSU at 7 p.m. in Noble Complex.
