USAO’s volleyball team made a trip to the northwest part of the state Saturday, Sept. 23, to face Oklahoma Panhandle State University (OPSU). Prior to this game, the Drovers record was 6-6 overall and 3-4 in the conference while OPSU sat at a record of 3-9 overall and 2-6 in conference play.
The first set showed that it would be a tough battle between these two teams, with the score at the end of the first set ending at 31-29 in favor of the Drovers. The Drovers ended the set amounting 20 kills on a total of 43 attempts.
The second set did not fall in favor of USAO, with OPSU tying up the set count with a score of 25-21. The Drovers tallied seven errors in the second set.
Once the third set started, it was clear that the bad luck the Drovers had in the second set, was trickling over into this one. OPSU was dominant, holding USAO to only nine kills with the set ending in a score of 25-19, in favor of the Aggies. The Drovers unfortunately totaled 11 errors in this set as well.
Two rough sets in a row lit a fire inside the Drover huddle. The fourth set was a dog fight, with OPSU controlling the lead for the start of the set. USAO was able to change that, by going on a five-point run to give them the lead at 14-9. The set seemed like USAO would be the winner, until OPSU went on a run of their own to take the lead of 18-17. Although the Aggies gained a couple more points, the Drovers were able to tie it up at 21-21, and finish with three straight points to give them the set with a score of 25-23.
After the fourth set, the Drovers were not going to accept a loss. Although off to a shaky start at the beginning of the fifth and final set, the Drovers went on a huge rally, scoring seven straight points. This run would ultimately be exactly what the Drovers needed to get the win, finishing the set with a score of 15-11.
Although a tough matchup in which they had to go to five sets, the Drovers came out on top and won 3-2. This win marks the first time that USAO has beaten OPSU in volleyball since USAO’s program began seven years ago.
After this historic win, USAO has a 7-6 overall record and 4-4 SAC record. USAO’s next game is Tuesday, Sept. 26 at Oklahoma City University beginning at 6 p.m. The next home matchup is Thursday, Sept. 28 against John Brown University starting at 7 p.m.
Matthew Yokum is a second-year communication major at the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.
