Sept. 18, 2010
Box Score
MACOMB, Ill. - Junior Ashley Nevelle dished out 33 assists in just three sets and freshman Audrey Wilson led the offensive attack with 12 kills in 29 attacks (.345) to lead the Oakland University (7-7, 2-1) to a sweep over Western Illinois University (5-6, 2-2), 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-17), in Summit League volleyball action on Saturday at Waste Management Court.
"This was a great team win," said OU coach Rob Beam. "I thought everyone stepped up at key times. Audrey (Wilson) was outstanding offensively. She found kills at big moments of the match. I thought Ashley (Nevelle) did a great job. We are looking forward to next weekend's home matches against two strong opponents."
Junior Jenna Lange led the team with five block assists and Nevelle chipped in with four. Oakland committed just 13 attacking errors and held the Fighting Leathernecks to an .069 attack percentage.
The Golden Grizzlies jumped out to a 12-3 lead in set one, but the Fighting Leathernecks fought back to 15-11. OU would pull it together after a timeout with a kill by Wilson and another one by junior Allison Bell as the Grizzlies went on to outscore WIU 10-6 to capture the opening set.
Set two was much tighter as Oakland held a slim 18-16 advantage late in the set. A kill by sophomore Meghan Bray and an attacking error by the Fighting Leathernecks and the Grizzlies looked like they had the set in hand at 20-16. WIU would then counter with two kills and an OU attacking error and the score was tied at 21-21. Wilson stopped the rally with a strong kill and the Leathernecks had a ball handling error and an attack error gave OU set point. After a kill and an ace by WIU moved the score to 24-23, Wilson ended the set with a kill to give Oakland a 2-0 lead in the match.
With set three tied at 10-10, the Golden Grizzlies began moving their attack around and got some big kills to score six consecutive points and take a commanding 16-10 advantage. A couple of blocks by the Grizzlies and an ace by Bray all but sealed the road victory for OU as they won the third and final set 25-17.
The Golden Grizzlies will host a pair of Summit League matches next weekend, Friday and Saturday, against UMKC and Southern Utah. Both nights are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
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