Arkadelphia, Ark. – The Ouachita Baptist University Tigers snuck past the conference leading Southwestern Oklahoma State University Bulldogs in five sets Saturday afternoon.
 
Head Coach Allison Frizell-Kizer had some relieved words to say after the match. "My initial thought is they are giving me a heart attack with the five sets that we have been going to, because that's about half the games we have played. We have been doing a pretty good job of starting strong in the fifth set and creating opportunities in the long run for us to finish and I am very pleased with how we played in four of the five sets. When we play as a team and play for each other, the scoreboard takes care of itself. The crowd was also a big help, our girls feed off of that and it shows camaraderie in our school and for our girls and what they do outside the court and brings OBU a whole new family name."
 
Coach Frizz had high words to say about her star setter Stormi Leonard (Decatur, Texas) after the match as well. "She knows her role is to be a team leader on and off the court and when her head is in the game, everyone else's heads are in the game. She also knows that there is limited time left, so why not go out 110% every game."
 
 
In the first set, the Bulldogs held on the momentum and the Tigers were unable to take the lead at any time. With the Tigers two points away from tying the Bulldogs at 10-8, SWOSU made a 9-3 run to move one step closer to taking the opening set. However, Ouachita gained some energy and rang off a 7-1 run of their own to pull back within two points. Each team traded points for the remainder of the set and the Bulldogs prevailed 25-23.
 
Set two was the complete opposite of the first. Ouachita led the entire match and kept SWOSU to a .122 hitting percentage. The Bulldogs pulled within three points of the Tigers at 21-17, but Adrianna Nolly (Denton, Texas) recorded two kills of the final four points that Ouachita scored to tie the match up.
 
The most exciting set occurred in the third set. Ouachita got off to a promising start, leading 14-11, but with the score tied at 16 the Bulldogs made a 7-1 run and were two points away from closing out the set. With the set just in reach for the Bulldogs, the Tigers clawed back into the set to force extra points 24-24. Two service aces from Stormi Leonard and a kill from Tabatha Huckabee (North Richland Hills, Texas) ensured the win for the Tigers at 27-25.
 
Despite the comeback in set three, the Bulldogs found set four fully in their favor as they jumped out to an early 6-0 lead. With the score 14-7, the Tigers were unable tot record back-to-back points for the remainder of the match. SWOSU outhit the Tigers .517 to .054 and secured the set with a 25-12 win.
 
In the fifth and final set, the Tigers turned the tables again against the Bulldogs beginning with a 6-1 run. Ouachita shared the love offensively in the next few points with kills by Nolly, Huckabee, Emily Lowe (Austin, Texas), and Paige Williams (Springdale, Ark.). The Tigers recorded the final two points off of attack errors from the Bulldogs and handed SWOSU their second loss in conference play. The Bulldogs hit for their lowest percentage of the game at .077.
 
The Tigers were led offensively by Adrianna Nolly who finished with 24 kills in the match, as well as Paige Williams and Tabatha Huckabee with 12 and 10 respectively. Stormi Leonard finished with another double-double to add to her career collection with 56 assists and 14 digs. Julianna Mack (Little Rock, Ark.) also recorded double digit digs with 30.
 
The Tigers will travel to Searcy Ark. for their rematch against now conference leader Harding University on Thursday, October 18. For more information about Ouachita athletics, go to www.obutigers.com.