Box Score
Seven down, one to go before the Sooner Athletic Conference shootout in Oklahoma City.
The Wayland Baptist volleyball team won its seventh conference match in as many outings Friday night in Hutcherson Center, sending John Brown's Golden Eagles back to Arkansas reeling from a 25-23, 25-17, 25-19 loss.
"Nobody said anything, but it was understood we wanted to win in three," Wayland coach
Jim Giacomazzi said.
They did win in three, for the seventh consecutive time as Wayland improved to 14-7 overall and 7-0 in the conference.
Next up at 11 a.m. Saturday in the Hutch is Bacone College, with which a 1-12 overall record and 0-7 conference ledger sits in last place in the league. The Warriors lug an 11-match skid from Muskogee, Okla.
After that, the Pioneers wrap up the first half of SAC play by taking on co-conference leader and 14
th-ranked Oklahoma City University at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 7 at OCU.
"It's nice to see where we are now compared to where we were in August," Giacomazzi said. "I'm pleased with the growth we've had. There's a lot less tension because everyone is understanding what I want and I'm understanding their personalities.
"As long as everybody works hard and the goal is to improve every day, then we're all on the same page."
Against John Brown (14-7, 5-3), the Pioneers had little trouble getting the job done, as has been the case since conference started.
"The first set, they beat us in every category. But the only thing that matters is who gets to 25 and who wins by two," Giacomazzi said.
For the match Wayland hit .214 with 41 kills, compared to the Golden Eagles' .125 and 26 kills.
Katie Inman led in the kill department with a season-high dozen while hitting .364. She was followed by
Alex Wood with 10 kills and 10 digs. It's the 10
th time in the last 11 matches Wood has produced double-digit kills, and it's her seventh double-double of the season.
Megan Sharratt added seven blasts while hitting .235, and
Mallorie Ellis and
Sadie Staton had four kills each.
"The distribution of kills was a lot better than it has been in weeks past," Giacomazzi said. "Katie did a good job as she continues to come off an injury, and Alex is bringing her mistakes under control better.
"Sadie did a fantastic job – four kills, nine attempts and hit .444."
Three-time reigning SAC Defender of the Week
Rossanna Ramos ended with 21 digs to lead the team. The Pioneers recorded seven aces, led by
Elisabeth Piroli with three and Wood with two.
Jessica Stohlmann and Staton each had solo blocks. Piroli finished with 22 assists and
Riyana Rakrouki 16.
"Defensively, I'm pleased. We averaged over 20 digs per set. Rossanna led us again there," Giacomazzi said. "Our serving is getting better.
"Trying to play with a little more intelligence is the next thing we want to do by making fewer errors at the end of a set," the coach added. "We're trying to hit a home run a lot of times to beat teams when we don't always need to do that. We just to need to be consistent and be patient, and when the opportunity presents itself then we can whale away."
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