Sept. 10, 2009
Box Score
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Senior Adrienne Leone turned in a 12-kill effort, while sophomore Ashleigh Slemmer added 10 kills, and sophomore Ashley Nevelle dished out 40 assists as the Oakland University volleyball team (6-1, 1-0 Summit League) opened league play with a 3-1 victory over UMKC on Thursday night at the Swinney Center.
"We did a great job rebounding from a slow start," said head coach Rob Beam. "We propelled ourselves to our best set in the fourth set. I was proud of how our team fought and stayed together, and played against a UMKC team that was playing good volleyball."
The Golden Grizzlies dropped the first set 25-18, but rallied to knot the match at 25-22 after the second set, and won sets three and four by scores of 25-22 and 25-19.
"We did some things offensively after the first set," said Beam. "We tried to emphasize our middles. We found some shots that were scoring, and we tried to do some things as far as hitting away from a block or putting the ball into a certain part of the court. Subtle things made a big difference in terms of our offensive production."
Junior Brittany Dunn led OU with 16 digs, while Slemmer and Nevelle turned in double-doubles with 13 and 12 digs, respectively. Freshman Meghan Bray rounded out the double-digit digs with 11. Oakland had six team blocks, with Nevelle, freshman Brittany Holbrook, and sophomore Jenna Lange all turning in three block assists. Oakland held a .153 to .139 advantage in hitting for the match.
"I think Ashley Nevelle did a great job making in-match adjustments and getting the ball to people that were scoring," said Beam. "This was a win where we had to grind it out. All the little things we work on in practice had to come out. Jenna Lange and Brittany Holbrook did a great job, and offensively produced when we needed them to."
The Golden Grizzlies will return to action on Saturday, as they travel to Cedar City, Utah for a league contest against Southern Utah. A 9 p.m. start time is scheduled.
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