University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Oklahoma
Heels Rally To Defeat Oklahoma 3-2
September 5, 2009 | Volleyball
Sept. 5, 2009
WICHITA, KAN. - North Carolina rebounded in a big way defeating Oklahoma 3-2 after dropping the first two sets Saturday. Carolina got off to a sluggish start, but got on the offensive in the final three sets to win the match. Freshman Emily McGee made her first career start against the Sooners count. McGee lead the Tar Heels with 18 kills, with 17 coming in the final three sets, while also registering a game-high 23 digs. Suzanne Haydel added 17 kills and 13 digs for the Heels, while senior Heather Brooks added 10 kills. Sophomore Erica Behm posted a game-high 46 assists and four big kills for Carolina.
In the opening set, the Tar Heels got off to a slow start as the Sooners scored four straight points behind Brianna Barker's serves forcing a quick Carolina timeout. Suzanne Haydel finally got the Heels on the board with a pair of quick kills to cut the lead to 6-2. Oklahoma continued to pour on the pressure stretching the lead to 13-4 leading to yet another Joe Sagula timeout. The Sooners continued to dominate the first set winning 25-8. Oklahoma hit at a .333 clip with 11 kills and 6.5 blocks while the Tar Heels hit a lowly -.077 with only five kills.
The second set was much of the same story at the start as the Sooners jumped out to an early 10-6 score. Carolina rebounded with a couple kills from Heather Brooks then a Heather Henry kill to tie the score at 11. Oklahoma responded with four straight points forcing a Carolina timeout at 15-11. The Tar Heels continued to battle back, but the Sooners were too much claiming the second set 25-18. Carolina continued to struggle offensively with ten attack errors and only nine kills in the second.
Carolina finally found their groove in the third set, claiming its first lead of the game. The Tar Heels pushed out to a 4-0 lead behind Emily McGee and Shelbey Bleke kills and never looked back. McGee added three more quick kills to stretch the lead to 7-0. The Tar Heels extended their lead to 19-9 behind McGee and Haydel. The Sooners scored a quick three points to cut the lead to 19-12 before a timely Joe Sagula timeout. The Sooners continued to battle back, but Carolina was able to take the set 25-15. McGee and the Tar Heels finally got on the offensive with 18 kills in the third, 12 by McGee and a .349 hitting percentage as a team.
The fourth set was extremely close as the Tar Heels built a 12-8 lead behind Shelbey Bleke and Haydel. The Sooners responded with a 5-0 run to take a 13-12 lead before Carolina pushed back in front 17-16. The Tar Heels added two more quick points before a Carolina timeout with the Heels in front 19-18. Carolina was able to take the pivotal fourth set 25-21 behind another balanced attack with 16 kills and only two errors good for a .326 clip. The fourth frame saw six tie scores and three lead changes before the Heels closed it out.
Carolina kept the ball rolling in the fifth, as the final set started in the Heels favor with a 5-2 score. Carolina built a 9-5 lead behind McGee's three kills and a Heather Brooks kill forcing a Sooner timeout. The Sooners battled back to slice the Heels' lead to five at 12-7 before a key Carolina timeout. Oklahoma cut the Carolina lead to two at 13-11 forcing yet another Sagula timeout. Two Haydel kills later allowed the Tar Heels to take the set 15-11 and the match 3-2.
Carolina is now 1-2 all-time against Oklahoma. The last meeting between the two teams prior to today was Aug. 26, 2006 in Norman, Oklahoma and the Sooners won that match in three sets. The Heels play one more game in the Best Western Shocker Classic against Grambling State at 5:00 p.m. CT.
