Oct. 8, 2010

Box Score | Postmatch Video Interview

ROCHESTER, Mich. -- Junior Jenna Lange had a match-best .600 hitting percentage to lead the Oakland University volleyball team (9-10, 4-4) to a three-set victory over Centenary (3-12, 0-9) in Summit League action on Friday at the Athletics Center O'Rena. The Golden Grizzlies hit .430 as a team with 41 kills and just four errors to win the match 25-9, 25-15, 25-12.

"I think our team came out very focused for this match," said Oakland head coach Rob Beam. "We were consistent in every phase of the game and a big part of the equation was that we had only four hitting errors. When you are that consistent it's a sign that you're playing really well. I think that was the case tonight, our team played really well against a good Centenary team."

Oakland seized the momentum early in first set, with sophomore Alli Kirk serving the team to a 5-0 lead. The Golden Grizzlies had 15 kills and no errors in the first set for a .469 kill-percentage. Sophomore Brittany Holbrook had three kills and a block assist in the opening set and finished the night with a team-high nine kills for a .571 hitting percentage.

The second set was closer, with the Ladies trailing just 10-8, before a solo block by junior Allison Bell swung the momentum in OU's favor. Bell had two blocks in the match to go with six kills for a .545 hitting effort. Lange had three of her six kills in the second set and also helped out with a block assist. Lange led the Golden Grizzlies at the net a solo block and two block assists.

Oakland enjoyed a 6-0 edge in blocks, but when the ball did get past the frontline players, senior Brittany Dunn was usually there with one of her match-high 19 digs. Dunn has posted double-digit digs in all but one match this season and has now done so in 16 consecutive matches. The Golden Grizzlies defense held the Ladies to a -.009 hitting percentage in the match.

Oakland finished off the first set in similar fashion to the opening set. With Oakland already leading 5-2, sophomore Meghan Bray hit three consecutive kills to give the Golden Grizzlies a commanding lead that the team never relinquished. Bray finished the match with eight kills and only one hitting error. Oakland hitters finished the match with just four errors thanks in part to the efforts of junior setter Ashley Nevelle, who posted 30 assists in the match and kept the team in-system for most of the night.

The match also served as a fundraiser for the team's Dig Pink Initiative. Oakland wore pink jerseys and sold merchandise to try and raise money and awareness for the fight against breast cancer. For more information, or to make a donation to the Dig Pink Initiative, click here.

"Tonight was our Second Annual Dig Pink Breast Cancer Awareness match," said Beam. "We had a great crowd and I saw a lot of pink ribbons, meaning a lot of people donated and there were a lot of our pink Oakland volleyball t-shirts in the crowd too. The team is going to be accepting donations for the entire month of October."

The Golden Grizzlies have now won seven matches in a row over the Ladies and are 13-2 in the all-time series. Oakland will finish off the conference weekend with a match against Oral Roberts on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the Athletics Center O'Rena.

-30-