Nov. 7, 2001
NORMAN, Okla. - Stevie Nicholas tallied a match-high 16 kills and Tisha Schwartz added 12 errorless kills in 25 swings as Baylor pounded Oklahoma 30-21, 30-17, 30-25 here Wednesday night in Big 12 Conference women's volleyball action.
With the victory, Baylor improves to 17-8 on the season and 8-8 in conference play, putting the skids on a brief two-match losing streak. Oklahoma falls to 2-25 overall and 1-13, losing its 15th consecutive match.
Baylor turned in a team attacking percentage of .360, the Bears' highest percentage since hitting .388 Sept. 9, 2000 against New Mexico State. Stevie Nicholas led the way with a .536 attacking percentage as her 16 kills were offset by just one error in 28 attempts. Baylor finished the night with 52 kills against only 11 errors in 114 swings.
The Bears hit .395 (19-4-38) in game one while holding OU to .176 (12-6-34). After trading point for point early in the game, Baylor broke an 11-11 tie with four straight points. Oklahoma battled back, tying the score at 18-18, but the Bears scored six straight and 12 of the next 15 points to claim the 30-21 victory.
In game two, Baylor was flawless on the attack, putting down 13 errorless kills in 32 attempts (.406). Trailing 2-1, Baylor scored six straight points and never looked back. Stevie Nicholas and Laura Daniela Lloreda both went 4-0-8 in game two, while Sunny Nicholas and Tatiana Kenon added a pair of errorless kills each.
Baylor put the wraps on their fifth consecutive victory over Oklahoma with a .295 attacking performance in game three. While the Bears' percentage dropped, they posted a match-high 20 kills in the third game. This time, Baylor led all the way after an early 1-1 tie. Oklahoma closed to within one point at 16-15, but the Bears responded with a five-point run.
Lloreda gave Baylor a third player in double digits in kills with 10 to go along with a match-high 15 digs. Dana Chuha tallied 41 assists, six digs and two blocks, Schwartz also had two blocks. Stevie Nicholas led all players with five service aces, as a team, the Bears totaled nine service aces.
Baylor will take the weekend off before returning to action Nov. 14 when the Bears will host No. 25 Kansas State for a 7 p.m. match at the Ferrell Center. Kansas State won the first meeting this season, a five-game decision in Manhattan, Kan. The Wildcats won the fifth game 15-10 after the Bears battled back from a two-game deficit.
