OAKLAND CITY, Ind. – A hot start on offense and a two-set lead was not enough for the Blue Raider volleyball team against the might of Oakland City (Ind.) on Tuesday evening. The hosts cleaned up their act late and got the better of Lindsey Wilson in five sets.
The loss moves the Blue Raiders to 17-5 overall on the year as they prepare to resume their Mid-South Conference schedule this weekend in Tennessee.
Ola Wyrzykowska finished with her third consecutive double-double – 19 kills and 18 digs, -- while
Sofija Pjevic came up short of a rare double-double of her own with 10 blocks and seven kills.
In her first career start, freshman
Rylee Springer passed out 36 assists and added seven digs, four blocks, three kills, and an ace.
Defensively,
Momo Hampton had 23 digs for her fourth outing of 20 or more this season. As a team, Lindsey Wilson ended the night with 17 total blocks – the most in a match since October 18, 2019, at Columbia (Mo.).
In the first set, Wyrzykowska broke a 2-2 tie with her first kill of the match. She followed with a service ace and continued to serve for a kill by
Marija Raonic and a combo block with Raonic and Pjevic. The Mighty Oaks hit back to tie the score at 7-7, the
Layla HuYoung entered the floor and picked up two of her four aces as part of a 5-0 Lindsey Wilson run. Kills from Pjevic and Wyrzykowska strengthened the lead to 17-10 but the home team did not shy away. An 11-4 swing knotted the set at 21-21. Afterwards, however, the Blue Raiders scored four of the next five points to take the opener 25-22.
Oakland City started strong in the second to go ahead 3-0. A series of errors mixed around another HuYoung ace brought Lindsey Wilson back to tie the score at 5-5. A four-point run soon after, with two kills and a block by Wyrzykowska, provided the cushion necessary for the Blue Raiders to stay in front. Pjevic was key down the stretch of the second set, contributing two blocks and a kill over her side's last five points.
An evenly-matched third set fell in favor of Oakland City, despite Lindsey Wilson holding a 0.167 to 0.094 advantage on offense. Between the fourth and fifth sets, the Mighty Oaks hit 0.228 and committed eight fewer attack errors than the visitors.
The fifth frame started with a 4-4 tie before the home team outscored Lindsey Wilson 11-4 to close it out.
The Blue Raiders travel to McKenzie and Henderson, Tennessee on Friday, October 3, and Saturday, October 4, respectively, for conference matches against Bethel and Freed-Hardeman.
