TULSA, Okla. — Wichita State got another 20-kill performance from Morgan Stout and out-dug one of the nation’s leading defensive teams in a 25-13, 22-25, 25-19, 25-23 win over Tulsa on Friday night at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.
The win is the 11th straight for Wichita State against Tulsa.
Wichita State (13-10, 8-3) finished with 76 digs to 59 for Tulsa, led by a career-high 21 ups from Katie Galligan, who donned the libero jersey for Wichita State. Emerson Wilford added 14 digs, and four other Shockers recorded at least six as WSU held Tulsa (15-8, 7-4) to a .140 hitting percentage.
Stout was at her best in the fourth set, powering eight kills on a staggering 18 attempts. She delivered the final two points of the match for WSU, capped off by a blistering kill with the Shockers clinging to a 24-23 lead.
The Shockers dominated the opening frame thanks to two long service runs from Galligan and Reagan Anderson. WSU led just 9-7 early in the set but rattled off a 14-2 run to construct a commanding 23-9 advantage. Five Shockers racked up multiple kills and the Golden Hurricane were held to a .000 hitting percentage.
Wichita State found themselves on the wrong end of a 17-11 scoreline midway through the second set, but slowly chipped away to inch within 22-21 following a Tulsa attack error. The Golden Hurricane were able to fend off the charge via kills from Tatum Tornatta and Jolana Smidlova, who had five kills and four blocks in the set.
The third set appeared to be headed for another nail-biting finish before the Shockers separated late. With their lead hanging in the balance at just 18-17, Stout flexed her muscles with two kills, a block and a service ace that clinched a 25-19 win and a 2-1 edge heading to the fourth.
WSU led 23-19 late in the fourth, but needed two final terminations from Stout after the Golden Hurricane sliced the deficit down to one.
The Shockers set a new season high for blocks in a four-set match with 15, including five block assists from both Sarah Barham and Maddie Wilson and six block assists plus a solo from Stout. WSU also dominated the serve and pass numbers, notching four aces to four errors while Tulsa managed just a single service ace against nine errors.
Wichita State and Tulsa will play the second leg of the series on Sunday afternoon in Wichita. First serve from Charles Koch Arena is scheduled for 1:00 pm.
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