OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – Wayland Baptist Volleyball opened the 2026 season with a statement Friday, splitting its first two matches of the Stars Invitational and closing the day with a straight-set victory over No. 12 Oklahoma Wesleyan.
The Pioneers bounced back from a 0-3 loss to LSU-Shreveport earlier in the day to knock off the nationally ranked Eagles, 26-24, 25-20, 27-25, moving Wayland to 1-1 on the young season.
"We as a team made huge improvements from our morning to our afternoon game," Head Coach Lucie Mahelova said. "A lot of teams with similar playing styles as us are at this tournament so it is a great challenge and an opportunity to play under pressure since the beginning of the season."
LSU-Shreveport 3, Wayland Baptist 0
Wayland opened the day against LSU-Shreveport and struggled to find its offensive rhythm in a 25-19, 25-19, 25-18 loss. The Pioneers finished the match with 24 kills while hitting .027 as a team.
Deniz Yileri led the Wayland attack with seven kills while adding two service aces and nine digs. Brooklyn Bundy and Lilou Henry-Souquet-Bressand each contributed six kills, with Henry-Souquet-Bressand also recording nine digs and an ace. Ana Zink directed the offense with 15 assists, while Milena Alliot-Maslankiewicz added six digs.
Despite staying within striking distance throughout the opening two sets, Wayland was unable to put together the run needed to take control. LSU-Shreveport finished with a .196 hitting percentage compared to Wayland's .027 and held a 40-24 advantage in kills.
Wayland Baptist 3, No. 12 Oklahoma Wesleyan 0
The Pioneers responded in a big way in their second match, sweeping No. 12 Oklahoma Wesleyan in three tightly contested sets.
Wayland immediately showed a different level of efficiency, hitting .257 in the opening set. The Pioneers battled through a back-and-forth frame before taking the opener, 26-24. Wayland carried that momentum into the second set, holding Oklahoma Wesleyan to a .000 hitting percentage and earning a 25-20 victory to move one set away from the upset.
The Eagles pushed Wayland to the limit in the third, but the Pioneers answered when it mattered most. With the set extending beyond 25 points, Wayland finished off the nationally ranked Eagles, 27-25, to complete the sweep and secure its first victory of the 2026 season.
Yileri delivered a strong all-around performance to lead the Pioneers, finishing with a match-high 13 kills on a .263 hitting percentage while adding 10 digs and two service aces. Henry-Souquet-Bressand added nine kills while hitting .286 and recorded eight digs. Bundy totaled seven kills and was a force at the net with four total blocks.
Zink controlled the Wayland offense with 31 assists while also serving three aces. Defensively, Aubrie Sierra led the Pioneers with 14 digs, while Yileri's 10 gave her a double-double. Taisiia Kalchenko added four kills and two total blocks.
One of the biggest differences from the opening match came in Wayland's efficiency and play at the net. The Pioneers hit .198 against Oklahoma Wesleyan while limiting the Eagles to just .099. Both teams finished with 37 kills, but Wayland held advantages in service aces, 7-5, and blocks, 6-5.
The victory gives the Pioneers an early signature win under second-year head coach Lucie Mahelova and provides momentum as Wayland continues its opening weekend at the Stars Invitational. The Pioneers entered the 2026 campaign looking to build on a 15-12 season in 2025.
Wayland Baptist returns to action Saturday with two more matches at the Stars Invitational, facing Texas A&M-Texarkana at 9 a.m. before closing the tournament against Evangel University at 2 p.m.
