The Basics
Score: Oral Roberts 1 – Missouri State 3
Records: ORU (0-1) – MSU (3-0)
Location: Hammons Student Center (Springfield, Mo.)
Box Score
 
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The Oral Roberts volleyball team battled all night in a four-set loss (23-25, 25-22, 14-25, 23-25) to Missouri State Friday evening from the Hammons Student Center.
 
ORU fell behind early as the Bears scored the first four points until freshman Kaia Dunford buried her first collegiate kill putting the Golden Eagles on the board. A quick, 5-0 push by ORU allowed the visitors to jump in front, 11-8, and pushed the margin to 16-11 on a block by Sakira LaCour and Morgan Blomquist. The Bears posted a run of their own scoring six-straight and the teams combined to deadlock six times in the late stages of set one, but it was MSU that won three of the last four points to claim the set, 25-23.
 
The Golden Eagles faced a similar start in set two as MSU opened on a 4-0 run before they were able to generate a strong push for a 9-8 edge registering five-consecutive points highlighted by a kill and solo block from freshman Jaxie Wakley. The Bears took control in the middle of the stanza taking an 18-14 lead on a pair of service aces. It was Jeslyn Spencer and Wakley posting back-to-back kills and Wakley combined with Blomquist for a block as ORU rallied for a 21-20 advantage forcing MSU into a timeout. It was Spencer that came through for the Golden Eagles putting away the final kill as they evened the match winning set two, 25-22.
 
Set three began with ORU building a 9-7 edge thanks to consecutive kills by Dunford, but MSU controlled the rest of the frame by scoring 11 of the next 13 points to take an 18-11 lead. The Golden Eagles were unable to mount a comeback in the stanza as the Bears secured the set, 25-14.
 
ORU quickly erased the momentum and jumped out to a 5-2 lead in set four only to see the home side score a 5-0 run forcing a timeout from the Golden Eagles. The stretch continued for MSU until LaCour stopped the rally on a kill making it a 13-8 deficit. That point helped swing the energy in ORU's favor as it battled back to even the score, 13-13, capped by a Sylvia Lawson and Wakley block. The Golden Eagles were able to take a 22-21 lead before the Bears scored the next three points and closed out the four-set win, 25-23.
 
Inside the Box Score

• Dunford made her first collegiate match one to remember leading the Golden Eagles with 16 kills on 51 swings. She narrowly missed a double-double finishing with nine digs.
• Wakley also had a sterling debut recording 11 kills on a team-best .214 hitting percentage, while adding a match-best seven block assists and a solo block.
• Libero Sarah Thiessen paced ORU with 20 digs tallying her 10th career outing with at least 20 digs.
• Bryanne Soares and Lawson combined for 38 set assists totaling 22 and 16, respectively, at the setter position. Lawson added five block assists and two kills.
• Four freshmen made their collegiate debuts for ORU as Dunford, Wakley, Soares and Chloe Salcedo contributed. Blomquist returned to the lineup after missing nearly all of the 2019 season with an injury and had four kills and four block assists. 

Up Next
The Golden Eagles play their final non-conference match of the season closing the weekend in Springfield, Missouri, facing the Shockers of Wichita State Saturday at noon.
 
For the latest information on ORU Volleyball, follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or go to www.ORUAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the ORU Athletics app from the App Store or Google Play Store.