SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. / POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – Wayland Baptist Volleyball battled through a pair of tough Sooner Athletic Conference road matches this weekend, earning a four-set victory over John Brown University on Friday before coming up just short in a five-set battle against College of the Ozarks on Saturday.
The weekend split moved the Pioneers to 8-6 overall and 4-2 in conference play.
Wayland opened the weekend Friday night in Siloam Springs against John Brown. After dropping the opening set 25-21, the Pioneers responded by taking control of the match. WBU evened things with a 25-21 victory in the second before winning the third, 25-18. The fourth proved to be the tightest set of the night, but Wayland finished the job with a 26-24 victory to secure the match, 3-1.
Deniz Yileri led the Pioneer offense with 17 kills while hitting .250 and added 18 digs for a double-double. Alaina Baran finished with eight kills, while Klaudia Brzeczkowska was efficient in the middle with seven kills and no errors on 17 attacks for a .412 hitting percentage.
Martyna Lewinska directed the offense with 40 assists and made a major impact from the service line, recording six of Wayland's 11 aces. She also contributed 12 digs. Milena Alliot-Maslankiewicz led the back row with 24 digs, while Aubrie Sierra added 14. The Pioneers finished the match with 52 kills, 49 assists, 11 aces and 89 digs.
Wayland returned to the court Saturday afternoon against College of the Ozarks and quickly grabbed the advantage. The Pioneers hit .314 in the opening set and rolled to a 25-18 victory. The Bobcats responded by taking the next two sets, 25-15 and 25-21, putting WBU in a must-win situation in the fourth.
The Pioneers answered the challenge. Wayland fought its way to a 25-23 fourth-set victory to force a deciding fifth set. The two teams continued to battle in the final frame, but College of the Ozarks pulled away to take the fifth, 15-12, and the match, 3-2.
Yileri once again led the Wayland attack with 14 kills and added 13 digs. Brooklyn Bundy provided one of her strongest offensive performances of the weekend, finishing with 12 kills while hitting .333, and Emma Scott added 11 kills on a .269 hitting percentage. Ana Zink also provided a spark with four kills on five attacks while adding seven assists.
Lewinska totaled 34 assists, 12 digs and two service aces, while Alliot-Maslankiewicz anchored the defense with a match-high 25 digs. Sierra added 12 digs, and Sevval Aslan contributed four total blocks.
Despite Saturday's result, the Pioneers showed their ability to respond throughout the weekend. Wayland came from behind after losing the opening set Friday to defeat John Brown and then fought back from a 2-1 deficit Saturday to force a fifth set against College of the Ozarks.
"We competed this weekend. It wasn't always pretty but we competed," assistant coach Dentton Hudspeth said. "A lot of areas we need to get better at but overall I'm proud that we showed up and didn't give up."
The weekend leaves Wayland at 8-6 overall and 4-2 in SAC play as the Pioneers continue through the heart of their conference schedule.
