Goodwell – The Pioneer Volleyball team extend their winning streak to three games to begin Sooner Athletic Conference play after pulling off a great comeback to take down a tough Oklahoma Panhandle State team 3-2 on Tuesday night in Goodwell, Oklahoma.
Wayland Baptist was in a back-and-forth battle to begin tonight's matchup with the Aggies until the score was 12-11, then the Pioneers rattled off a 10-0 scoring run to take a commanding 22-11 first set lead. The run was sparked by seven different Pioneers earning a kill including two by
Carlee Heidebrecht. Heidebrecht had a team-high five kills in the first set. Wayland Baptist went on to win set one, 25-19.
The Aggies responded in the second set by jumping out to a 16-9 lead over the Pioneers, but Wayland Baptist would trim their deficit to just two after back-to-back kills by
Selma Sutaj made it 16-14, OPSU. The Pioneers would stay within striking distance for the remainder of the set, but ultimately fell, 23-25.
OPSU continued their momentum by taking an early 11-5 lead over the Pioneers to begin the third set. Two more kills by Heidebrecht sparked a Pioneer run that tied the game up at 12, but the Aggies would re-take command of the set and hold a 22-16 lead after a few attack errors by the Pioneers. Wayland Baptist would end up dropping set three, 21-25, to fall behind in the match, 1-2.
Fade Ogunbade jolted the Pioneers to begin the fourth set after hitting back-to-back kills to give the Pioneers the early lead. Wayland Baptist would push their lead to 9-4 after a nice kill by
Emma Scott, one of two kills in the set for Scott. The Pioneers took a commanding 18-7 lead after back-to-back kills by Heidebrecht. Wayland Baptist dominated the fourth, 25-10, to tie the match at two a piece with a decisive fifth set on the way.
The Pioneers attacked the Aggies immediately in the fifth and final set, jumping out to a 6-1 lead that featured two kills by Ogunbade, and was capped off by an
Averi Penner kill. Scott recorded two more kills down the stretch of the fifth set that gave the Pioneers a 13-8 advantage. The Pioneers secured the victory after another Ogunbade kill made the score 15-9, giving the Pioneers the 3-2 win over the Aggies.
Assistant Coach
Lucie Mahelova was happy her team was able to get the win, but talked about how a lack of focus can cost you, saying, "That is one of the better teams in the conference that we've played so far, and we learned the hard way that you can't lose focus during a set against a good defensive team."
Coach Mahelova continued, "But we were able to find a way to score points and get the win. We know what we need to work on to be prepared for the upcoming road trip to Oklahoma City."
Heidebrecht was solid againt the Aggies, finishing with 15 kills and a .180 hitting percentage, while stepping up defensively with 21 digs and two block assists. Scott was big down the stretch for the Pioneers, finishing with five kills and a .571 hitting percentage. Ogunbade had another solid performance, ending with 13 kills, a .226 hitting percentage, and two block assists. Penner had 11 kills and 14 digs defensively. Sutaj finished with 11 kills and 13 digs.
The Pioneers will travel to Oklahoma City this weekend for a Friday night showdown against the Stars of Oklahoma City University. The match is set to begin at 7:00 PM.
