FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The Oakland volleyball team delivered an intense, back-and-forth battle, but ultimately fell short in a heart-pounding five-set match against Purdue Fort Wayne here tonight at the Gates Sports Center.
 
SET ONE - OAKLAND 28, PURDUE FORT WAYNE 26
The Oakland Golden Grizzlies fought hard to claim a thrilling 28-26 victory in the first set against Purdue Fort Wayne. Oakland took an early lead with key contributions from Rachel Rossman, who delivered both a service ace and dished out an assist to Libby Smith, putting the Golden Grizzlies up 2-0. Purdue Fort Wayne battled back, evening the score at 4-4 after an attack error and a pair of kills.

The set continued as a back-and-forth affair, with kills from Oakland's Gentry Brown and Ainsley Guse keeping the Golden Grizzlies in contention. Purdue Fort Wayne capitalized on a few errors from the Golden Grizzlies and went ahead, 18-14, as it looked to end the set.

However, Oakland didn't back down, tying the set at 23-23 after a late push. Both teams traded errors and kills down the stretch, but it was Oakland's Emily Wichmann who delivered the final blows, first with a service ace to give Oakland the edge at 27-26, followed by a critical block by Tyler Linkhart and Guse, sealing the set at 28-26.
 
SET TWO - OAKLAND 23, PURDUE FORT WAYNE 25
The second set was another intense battle, but this time Oakland fell just short, losing 25-23 to Purdue Fort Wayne. The Golden Grizzlies stayed competitive early, with strong kills from Guse and Brown helping them keep pace. Oakland capitalized on a few attack errors from Purdue Fort Wayne and a few kills of its own to stay ahead, 17-11.

Brown continued to shine, contributing key points to keep the Golden Grizzlies ahead. However, a late push from Purdue Fort Wayne ultimately gave the Mastodons the edge. Despite a valiant effort from Oakland, Purdue Fort Wayne closed out the set, 25-23, with a final block, tying the match at one set apiece.
 
SET THREE - OAKLAND 22, PURDUE FORT WAYNE 25
In the third set, Oakland fought hard but ultimately came up short, falling 25-22 to Purdue Fort Wayne. Purdue Fort Wayne jumped out to an early lead but Oakland maintained pressure as it kept itself right in the game, not falling far behind.

Purdue Fort Wayne remained ahead, but Oakland slowly chipped away at the lead, as timely kills from Tyler Linkhart and Sydney Green kept the team in it. A kill from Brown evened the set at 21 apiece, as the match was then tied at 22 a side as Green contributed another kill. However, it was the Mastodons that came out on top as it scored the final three points of the set to jump ahead in the match, 2-1.
 
SET FOUR - OAKLAND 26, PURDUE FORT WAYNE 24
Oakland showed resilience in the fourth set, edging out Purdue Fort Wayne 26-24 in a thrilling back-and-forth battle to force a decisive fifth set. The Mastodons jumped out to an early three-point lead, but Oakland went on a charge and went on a 6-2 run, capped off by back-to-back attack errors, to jump ahead in the set.

Purdue Fort Wayne fought back though and jumped out to a strong lead as the Golden Grizzlies saw its deficit grow to seven at one point. There was no quit in the Golden Grizzlies though, as the team rallied, down 17-11, to eventually tie the set at 18-18, and eventually took the lead at 19-18 after a Mastodons attack error.

The end of the set remained tight as Oakland led, 24-23, and looked to close things out. The Mastodons, however, knotted things up at 24 apiece, but a kill from Linkhart and a block by Green and Christina Bohm sealed the set for the Golden Grizzlies in a big way, as it rallied back and looked to complete the comeback in the fifth and final set
 
SET FIVE - OAKLAND 25, PURDUE FORT WAYNE 27
In a nail-biting fifth set, Oakland fell just short, losing 27-25 to Purdue Fort Wayne in a dramatic finish. Just like the sets prior, set five teetered back-and-forth in the opening points as neither side to an advantage. Oakland started to hold a slight edge, at 13-11, as Green tacked on yet another kill, but two-straight from Purdue Fort Wayne tied the game at 13.

A Linkhart kill put Oakland ahead, 15-14, to set up match point, but the Mastodons answered to extend the set. From 15-15 on, it was an intense, back-and-forth effort from both sides as one team looked to take the match, but the other had an answer. In that span, the Golden Grizzlies held match point four times, while the Mastodons looked to close things out on six different occasions.

The Golden Grizzlies final effort came after a Bohm kill to go ahead, 24-23, but it ended up being the final match point for Oakland as the Mastodons rallied and scored four of the final five points, including the final two, to take the long final set, 27-25.

 
Linkhart and Brown paced the Golden Grizzlies with 18 kills each, as Linkhart hit at a .232 clip. Rossman and Wichmann also both led the team in digs, with 21 each, as five separate players recorded a service ace.
 
The Golden Grizzlies wrap up play against the Mastodons tomorrow (Oct. 12) with first serve set for 2:00 p.m. ET. Tomorrow's game will be streamed live on ESPN+.