The Oakland University volleyball team defeated the Robert Morris University Colonials at the OU Credit Union O’rena on Saturday, Sept. 23, with a final score of 3-0.
“I think it was a really big win for us after kind of struggling last night,” assistant coach Kyle Stahl said. “We did some good video review today, and going into the match, I think we had a good game plan, and we stuck to that. We were very disciplined — that allowed us to do some very good things.”
Oakland opened the match by scoring first, thanks to a kill from Patti Cesarini. Two possessions later, Cesarini followed up with another kill, and the momentum shifted towards the Grizzlies side as the team went on a 3-0 run.
After trading points, the Grizzlies continued to expand their lead with a quick 3-1 run, giving OU a six-point lead at 14-8, the largest lead of the set. Some more back and forth ensued before RMU called their first timeout.
The Colonials brought a lot of energy coming out of their first timeout as they trimmed the Grizzlies’ lead down to just three points, leading to an OU timeout.
Following their timeout, the Grizzlies shifted the pace back in their favor and went on another 3-0 run, bringing back their six-point lead at 21-15, culminating in RMU calling their second timeout of the evening.
“I think we were just really intentional with what we were talking about in those timeouts and what we could do to affect the game coming out of those timeouts, and we just executed really well,” Stahl said.
After RMU’s timeout, OU kept up their momentum, finishing out the first set as winners with a score of 25-19.
The second set opened with a block from Cesarini, and RMU responded with their point as the set started tied at 1-1. However, following a kill from Ainsley Guse, the Grizzlies went on a 3-0 run, securing a quick lead of 4-1.
Despite the quick OU lead, RMU fought back, scoring two straight points and cutting the Grizzlies lead down to one point. The Grizzlies responded promptly, going on a 4-0 run and a 5-1 run following a Colonial timeout, giving OU their largest lead of the night at 13-4.
Following OU’s run, the Colonials scored six straight points, trimming the OU lead down to 13-10. After an OU timeout, the Grizzlies came back rejuvenated, pushing their lead to 15-10. After the teams traded away more points, the score sat at 19-14 before the Colonials cut the lead down to 19-17.
Despite the late resurgence from RMU, the Grizzlies pulled away toward the end of the set, scoring three straight points to win the night’s second set with a score of 25-18.
Come the third set of the night, the Grizzlies left the Colonials no chance at a comeback. OU took a quick lead at 8-2 before increasing it to 15-6. Minutes later, the Grizzlies went on a 3-1 run, expanding their lead to 18-7, the largest lead of the night.
Although RMU put up a good effort, the Grizzlies ultimately came away as winners of the set and the game, with a final set score of 25-15.
The Grizzlies will next take the court on Friday, Sept. 29, where they will face off with the Wright State University Raiders on the road. The next home game will be on Friday, Oct. 6, at the OU Credit Union O’rena against the Cleveland State University Vikings.
