The Basics
Score: Western Illinois 0 – Oral Roberts 3
Records: WIU (4-23, 3-13 SL) – ORU (16-8, 10-5 SL)
Box Score
Location: Cooper Aerobics Center (Tulsa, Okla.)
TULSA, Okla. – Behind a dominant effort from
Sakira LaCour and
Jaxie Wakley in the middle, the Oral Roberts volleyball team cruised past Western Illinois in three sets (25-14, 28-26, 25-17) from the Cooper Aerobics Center Thursday night. The duo combined for half of the team's 44 kills as LaCour finished with a match-high 12 kills and Wakley added 10.
Aixa Vigil served up a 4-0 run for the Golden Eagles, including two service aces, and
Sarah Thiessen added two more aces during a 5-0 burst as the home side took command early in set one, 9-3. Consecutive errors by the Leathernecks helped ORU double-up the advantage, 18-9, before Wakley hit off the WIU block for a kill and joined Vigil on a block for a 22-12 lead. The Golden Eagles scored the final three points of the frame getting a kill from LaCour and closed it out, 25-14, on a Wakley ace.
After WIU jumped to a 5-1 lead in the second stanza, Wakley,
Jeslyn Spencer and
Bryanne Soares all delivered kills for ORU and Wakley came up with a solo block on a 4-0 run to even the score, 6-6. The Leathernecks responded and took an 11-8 advantage before the Golden Eagles caught fire. Thanks to six-straight points, ORU turned a one-point deficit into a five-point cushion, 17-12, behind two kills from both LaCour and
Trinity Freeman and the pair also combined on a block in the rally. The visitors slowly chipped away at the margin and fought off two set points to tie the set, 24-24, but the Golden Eagles broke through at the end, 28-26, as Wakley put away the last two points.
ORU posted five of the opening six points in the third set capped on a Spencer ace and continued to hold off the Leathernecks to maintain the edge. A LaCour kill followed by a WIU error pushed the Golden Eagles to a 13-9 lead. Still holding a two-point cushion, 17-15, it was the serving of Spencer that forced the Leathernecks into turmoil as the junior led the charge on a 6-0 run. Two LaCour blocks and kills from
Kaia Dunford and Spencer aided the surge and ORU promptly ended the match on a Freeman swing, 25-17. The Golden Eagles hit .452 in the final set totaling 14 kills without an error.
Inside the Box Score
- LaCour buried five of her six swings in the third set on the way to a match-best 12 kills and a .500 hitting percentage. It was her 11th time this season reaching double-digit kills and she also registered four block assists.
- Wakley could not be stopped offensively as the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, native closed her outing with 10 kills on just 17 swings hitting at a .588 clip. She added a career-high three solo blocks.
- Freeman was consistent all night and tallied 11 kills for the Golden Eagles, including four kills on 10 swings in the final set. The freshman added four digs and three block assists.
- Soares put together a 34-set assist, 11-dig double-double, while Sarah Thiessen gave the ORU defense a team-leading 15 digs to go with six set assists.
- The Golden Eagles served up eight service aces, five of which came in the opening set.
Up Next
For the first time in program history, ORU will host the newest member of The Summit League, the Tommies of St. Thomas Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m., while honoring its five seniors during a pre-match ceremony.
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