Drovers Drop a Pair at Day Two of the College of the Ozarks Labor Day Tournament

POINT LOOKOUT, Mo. – Saturday afternoon, the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (4-5, 0-0 SAC) dropped a pair of matches at day two of the College of the Ozarks Labor Day Tournament against Evangel University (Mo.) and Sterling College (Kan.). Unfortunately, both matches resulted in three-set losses against their undefeated foes. 

On Friday, the Drovers began the weekend with a 3-0 win against Mission University (Mo.), followed by a 3-1 loss against Avila University (Mo.).

vs EVANGEL UNIVERSITY (6-0, 0-0 KCAC)

The Drovers day got off to a rough start, suffering a three-set loss against the Valor.

The Drovers struggled early in the first set, but regrouped and trimmed the deficit before suffering a 25-20 loss in the opening frame. 

Evangel opened the second set on an 8-0 run and cruised to a 25-9 victory, putting USAO in a 2-0 hole. The Valor stayed hot and wrapped up the match with a commanding 25-6 win.

As a team, the Drover offense compiled a .000 attack percentage with 17 kills, while the Valor recorded a .333 attack percentage and 49 kills. USAO's setters dished out a total of 16 assists, meanwhile the defense produced 40 digs and five total blocks. 

Giselle Calderon led USAO's offense with four kills. Josie Joyce dished out a team-high of nine assists, and Brynlee Birney recorded a team-high of 13 digs on defense.

vs STERLING COLLEGE (8-0, 0-0 KCAC)

The second match of the day featured much closer scores than the first match, but still suffered the same 3-0 loss in the end. 

Sterling narrowly edged USAO in the first set, clinging to a 25-21, prior to winning the final two sets with identical 25-19 scores.  

As a team, the Drover offense produced 33 kills on a .068 attack percentage, while the Warriors put away 43 kills on a .233 attack percentage. Defensively, USAO recorded 66 digs and 2.0 total blocks, meanwhile Sterling produced 65 digs and 6.0 blocks.

Jaliyah Cox led the Drover offense with a dozen kills. Morgan Kobe contributed seven kills, followed by Laura Barrios Bardi with six. 

Josie Joyce recorded her first double-double of the season as she dished out 11 assists, in addition to 14 digs. Bailey Makahununiu distributed eight assists and added 12 digs defensively. 

Brynlee Birney anchored the defense with a team-high of 15 digs, in addition to seven assists. Mallory Miller added 11 digs. 

WHAT'S NEXT?

The Drovers will be back in action on Thursday, September 5, as they host the conference-opener against Nelson University. First serve is scheduled for 7:00 PM CT inside Drover Fieldhouse. 

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