Long-awaited weekend arrives for WBU volleyball

The Wayland Baptist University volleyball team has had this weekend circled on its calendar for months.
 
The 22^nd-ranked Pioneers have been on the road the past four weeks. During that time they have climbed in the rankings and posted a program-best 15-2 record. Now, it's the first home weekend of Sooner Athletic Conference play and, perhaps most importantly, the Pioneers meet Oklahoma Baptist University for the first time since losing to the Bison, 25-20, 25-20, 25-15, in the SAC championship match last season.
 
After a single home match to kick off the season, the Pioneers set off on a grueling, 30-day road swing in preparation for SAC play. WBU kicked its season off with a 3-0 sweep of the University of the Southwest at home then hit the road for three tournaments.
 
First, Wayland breezed through the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor Tournament in Belton before taking care of USW again, this time on the road. The Pioneers then headed west to California where they faced their stiffest competition of the season. WBU narrowly missed beating No. 9 The Master's College in their first match before defeating No. 20 Cal State-San Marcos in their second. WBU split again on day two, falling to Vanguard, which now is ranked 17^th, then beating tournament host Menlo College.
 
Wayland went to Salina, Kan., the following weekend where it swept the competition at the La Quinta Inn & Suites Kansas Wesleyan Invitational. Last weekend the Pioneers traveled to Oklahoma City, defeating Mid-America Christian and Oklahoma City University in their first two SAC matches. After handling East Central University in a non-conference matchup, the Pioneers improved their record to 15-2.
 
Going 15-2 is impressive under any circumstances, but winning 14 of 16 games on the road is especially impressive. Head coach Jim Giacomazzi did not downplay his team's success.
 
"You put together your schedule and you expect to win every game, but that's just now how it usually is," Giacomazzi said. "I'm pleasantly surprised at where we currently are. It has been a successful start to the season."
 
All of this has brought the Pioneers to this weekend when they will host their first SAC match of the season at 7 p.m. Friday in Hutcherson Center against Southwestern Christian University, followed by what WBU has been itching for: a showdown with No. 12 Oklahoma Baptist.
 
"The match on Saturday has been like a 12-year-old waiting for Christmas," Giacomazzi said. "We've been focusing on OBU since the SAC championship last year."
 
Oklahoma Baptist (12-4) has seen its fair share of good competition so far this year. The Lady Bison have played five teams in the top-25 and another that has received votes. OBU owns wins against No. 10 Embry-Riddle, No. 21 Eastern Oregon and (RV) Doane, and losses to No. 8 MidAmerica Nazarene, No. 11 Madonna and No. 23 Northwestern. The Lady Bison's fourth loss came against College of the Ozarks, a team the Pioneers defeated, 3-1, at the Kansas Wesleyan Tournament.
 
The potential NAIA Match of the Week features some of the top players in the country. OBU is led by senior Kristin Pressley, who so far this season has been named SAC Player of the Week twice as well as Hitter of the Week once. A two-time NAIA 1^st Team All-American, Pressley is 10th in the nation in kills per game.
 
WBU is led by sophomore Shahala Hawkins, the reigning SAC Player of the Week who twice was named conference Hitter of the Week. Hawkins, who was an NAIA Honorable Mention All-American last year, is 15^th in the nation in blocks per game and 16^th in hitting percentage.
 
Other key players in the match will be Wayland's Grecia Rivera, who like Hawkins and Pressley has been named SAC Player of the Week. OBU's Valerie Stetzer has been named SAC Libero of the week three times, and setters Ashlyn Westerman (2) and Rachel Aguilar (1) have been named SAC Setter of the Week. Westerman is 18^th in the NAIA in assists per game.
 
With a plethora of great players on the court, Giacomazzi has had his team hard at work in preparation for the weekend.
 
"We've been working on shoring up our blocks by reading the ball faster off the setter's fingers," he said. "We've also been working on our transition offense as well as being more proficient at our out-of-system offense."
 
Both Wayland and Oklahoma Baptist are having great seasons thus far, and Saturday's match should live up to the hype.
 
"It's going to be a barn burner," Giacomazzi said. "They'll bring their 'A' game, we'll bring our 'A' game, and we're going to hit the court and sparks are gonna fly. "
 
To see the sparks fly, be sure to be at Hutcherson Center at 7 p.m. Friday when Wayland takes on Southwestern Christian followed by Saturday's 11 a.m. showdown against the Lady Bison.