(This match was later forfeited by WBU).
GOODWELL, Okla. – Wayland Baptist had no answer for Essence West.
West, the dynamic 5-foot-5 junior outside hitter for Oklahoma-Panhandle State, recorded 27 kills to lead the Aggies to a 25-20, 27-25, 16-25, 25-23 victory over the Sooner Athletic Conference-leading Pioneers here Tuesday.
"Essence West did a great job hitting around us tonight. We took too long to make adjustments with her," Wayland coach
Jim Giacomazzi said. "(Celenia De Leon Tori), their taller setter, kept us on our heels a lot with her setting (30 assists) and tipping. She also blocked us a lot."
OPSU (17-9, 9-6 SAC) ended with 24 blocks, twice as many as Wayland (19-6, 12-3).
Ranked the equivalent of 28
th in the NAIA, the Pioneers matched OPSU's 57 kills, with
Paxton Patterson getting 16,
Amber Daniel 13,
Wendy Cobbah 12 and
Alexa Hinojos 11. Hinojos hit a match-high .526, committing just one error in 19 swings.
Daniel added 19 digs, while
Ariel Marquez got 18 and
Lucie Mahelova 11. Mahelova produced 53 assists and four block-assists.
Tatijana Markic served three aces.
"OPSU did a better job preparing to play us than we did preparing to play against them," Giacomazzi said. "I needed to do a better job getting our team ready to play and to make faster adjustments. I believe I failed to do that in this match."
Wayland swept the Aggies when they met Sept. 14 in Plainview, 25-22, 25-18, 25-23. Tuesday's loss snapped a five-match winning streak and slipped the Pioneers into a tie for second place in the SAC with Oklahoma City (14-8, 12-3), a half-game behind Texas Wesleyan (17-5, 12-2).
After a seven-match road swing, the Pioneers play at home for the first time since Sept. 25 when they host John Brown (13-13, 7-7) at 1 p.m. Saturday. WBU handled the Golden Eagles in Arkansas earlier this season, 22-25, 25-20, 25-22, 25-23.
