Box Score
SHAWNEE, Okla. – Wayland Baptist recorded its fourth straight victory and third straight sweep, taking out St. Gregory's University in Sooner Athletic Conference play here Friday evening, 25-21, 25-16, 25-19.
"We started out a little slow but wound up getting the road-weariness out of our legs. As the match went on we started coming around and eliminated a lot of errors," WBU coach
Jim Giacomazzi said.
The Cavaliers (7-8, 1-2 SAC) opened conference 10 days earlier by knocking off Texas Wesleyan at home in five. It was the program's first win over a team either ranked or receiving votes in a national poll. With seven wins, SGU has already equaled its win total from last season.
A day after the historic victory over Texas Wesleyan, St. Greg's fell to No. 18 Oklahoma City on the road in three. Similarly, the Cavs were no match for Wayland, either.
While WBU (10-7, 3-0 SAC) trailed in all three sets against the Cavaliers, it was never for long or ever by very much. The Pioneers' latest deficit was 13-12 in the third set, but just as in the first two, Wayland dominated down the stretch to easily win.
"We had a lot of people get double-doubles today, so that was good to see," Giacomazzi said.
Alex Wood and
Mallorie Ellis led Wayland with 13 and 12 kills, respectively, while hitting .135 and .113. The Pioneers ended with 34 kills and hit .119 as a team.
"Alex and Mallorie were the achors for our offense," Giacomazzi said. "They both did a good job offensively and defensively. They're starting to get a lot of quality touches."
Rossanna Ramos recorded 31 digs, a season-high in a three-set match for her, followed by
Elisabeth Piroli with 17 and Ellis with 13.
"We did a pretty good job overall on defense. Not too many times do we go three sets and get 85 digs," Giacomazzi said. "Besides Rossanna, I was pleased to see so many digs from Elisabeth."
Riyana Rakrouki paced the team with 15 assists while Piroli got 13. Wayland produced six blocks, two by
Jessica Stohlmann, and five aces, two by Wood.
St. Greg's finished with 27 kills and hit .022.
"I'd still like to see us have a better return on our attacks," Giacomazzi said. "We're getting a lot of swings but need to have more of them convert to kills. Part of the reason why both teams dug so much is because neither team could put the ball down.
"We had a couple more kills and fewer errors. Really, that made the difference in the match."
The Pioneers will be in nearby Oklahoma City Saturday to take on Mid-America Christian (6-4, 0-3) at 11 a.m. The Lady Evangels fell on Friday to John Brown, 17-25, 25-23, 25-17, 25-18.
Wayland remains tied atop the SAC with OCU (12-3) and JBU (11-4), all with 3-0 league marks. The Stars host the Golden Eagles on Sept. 17.
