SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist (22-9) won its second Great American Conference Tournament Championship in the last three seasons on Saturday, sweeping rival Southwestern Oklahoma State at FireLake Arena. The Bison won by scores of 25-16, 25-20 and 26-24 to claim their fourth GAC tourney title under coach
Anna Howle.
The Bison now move on to the NCAA Division II Tournament after earning the GAC's automatic bid. This will be the third time in program history that the green and gold will have competed in the NCAA's national postseason. More info will come on Monday, Nov. 24 when the NCAA has its selection show.
Rylee Unruh, the tournament MVP, delivered a standout performance, pacing OBU with 24 kills on an impressive .415 hitting percentage, including eight kills in each of the final two sets. She added 12 digs and three aces, accounting for a match-high 26 points. Furthermore, Unruh's 24 kills were a three-set GAC Tournament record.
Mackenzie Frazee and
Lillian Noble provided strong support at the net, combining for 17 kills and six blocks, helping the Bison out-hit SWOSU .294 to .205.
Setter
Emily Boyer guided the offense with 29 assists while also chipping in seven digs and an ace. Defensively, libero
Karsyn Hunter anchored the back row with 14 digs, part of a unit that tallied 66 as a team.
OBU's block also proved disruptive, producing 12 block assists and limiting SWOSU to just nine kills in the opening frame.
The Bison set the tone early, racing to a 25–16 win in the first set behind an explosive .429 hitting mark. Southwestern responded with a stronger push in the second, but OBU maintained a steady edge throughout to take a 25–20 victory. The third set brought the tightest drama of the afternoon, featuring four ties and a late SWOSU surge, but Unruh and Frazee produced key swings down the stretch to close out the 26–24 clincher.
In addition to Unruh's MVP honors, Boyer and Hunter also were named to the all-tournament team for the Bison.
