Dec. 5, 1997

Oklahoma Downs Houston 3-0 in NCAA First Round Action

Sooners to Face Defending National Champion Stanford Next

STANFORD, Calif. - The Oklahoma women's volleyball team, making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1988, made its return a successful one with a first round 15-12, 15-9, 16-14 victory over Houston at Stanford University's Maples Pavilion. With the win, the Sooners, who improved to 20-12 on the season, advance to face the defending national champion Stanford Cardinal tomorrow night at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are still available and can be purchased at the gate. With the loss, Houston completed its season with a 23-10 mark.

Oklahoma, which would have to overcome early deficits in all three games, shook off early jitters to overcome a 6-1 Houston run to open play in the first game and eventually knotted the game up at 10-10. After a see-saw battle to 12-12, the Sooners broke free and capped the comeback with a dump shot by junior setter Meredith Van Horn that delivered the Sooners to a 15-12 game one win.

The Cougars managed a 3-1 lead in game two before Oklahoma and senior outside hitter Patrice Arrington caught fire. Led by Arrington, who posted 11 kills in the second stanza, the Sooners ran off a 9-1 run and never looked back en route to a 15-9 game two victory and a 2-0 match lead.

Houston again took a 3-1 lead in the third game, but unlike the first two, the Cougars hung in and prevented any substantial Sooner runs. The Sooners took their first lead at 7-6 and never relinquished it. The Cougars never allowed the Sooners to pull away, drawing the game to 14-14 and within reach of a win. After five consecutive sideouts, a Cougar hitting error and match-winning kill by junior middle blocker Tanisha Webster delivered the Sooners to a 16-14 win and the opening round victory.

Arrington posted match-high's in kills (21) and digs (14) for Oklahoma while senior outside hitter Melissa Peterson and Webster added 14 and 13 kills, respectively, for the Sooners. Van Horn recorded a match-high 55 assists. Senior outside hitter Emily Leffers paced Houston with 17 kills while junior outside hitter Debbie Vokes pitched in 14.

Oklahoma Head Coach Miles Pabst:
"We're really happy with the win. I thought we made a wonderful comeback in game one. We played okay in game two, but I thought we were tentative in game three. I felt that we played not to lose. We didn't use the middle like we should have. None of these kids have been in the NCAA Tournament and they came out tight, but did a good job. We'll get ready for Stanford tomorrow night."

Houston Head Coach Bill Walton:
"We didn't play very good. We didn't seem to have the right attitude throughout the match and there was a lot of rationalizing when we were down. Oklahoma's outside hitters did a good job of keeping the pressure on, never allowing us an opportunity to feel good about our play. It was a good win for Oklahoma and hopefully they can get it together for Stanford. We both played an ugly game tonight."

Stanford University Women's Volleyball