As the calendar flips to Oct., Oakland sports teams continue to compete week after week. Here is a full breakdown of how the Golden Grizzlies teams fared in their athletic competitions for the week of Oct. 1-7.
Women’s golf
It was a great week for the women’s golf team, which won its invitational on Oct. 2-3.
The Golden Grizzlies competed against 10 other teams in the Shirley Spork EMU Invitational in Ypsilanti, Michigan, last week, and thanks to consistent team scoring and a second-place individual finish from Bridget Boczar, Oakland took home the trophy.
Over the three-round event, Boczar shot scores of 70, 69 and 70 (7-under par, 209 total strokes) on the par-72 course. She came up one stroke shy of Bowling Green’s Ava O’Sullivan, who finished 8-under par with 208 strokes total.
Oakland’s Olivia Hemmila and Hannah Kono also placed in the top 11, while Savannah Haque and Grace Boczar placed within the top 20.
The Golden Grizzlies finished with an 872 over the three-round event, which was three strokes better than second-place Bowling Green.
Other schools at the event included, in order of finish:
Western Michigan
Eastern Michigan
Purdue Fort Wayne
Ohio
Akron
Green Bay
Cleveland State
Central Michigan
Detroit Mercy
The invitational featured four opposing Horizon League teams, all of which Oakland beat by at least 29 strokes.
Oakland will head to Birmingham, Michigan, to compete in the Chippewa Invitational on Oct. 16-17.
Men’s golf
Competing in an invitational of its own at the beginning of Oct., the men’s golf team didn’t fare as well as the ladies did.
In the 15-team Tom Tontimonia Invitational, Oakland shot four strokes under par but came in seventh place overall. OU’s top individual finisher was Yaro Ilyenko, who finished tied for fourth place overall with a score of 6-under par.
The Golden Grizzlies were in third place after each of the first two rounds, but the team slipped to seventh place by the end of the final round.
Oakland finished behind the likes of Butler, Bowling Green, IUPUI, Marshall, Purdue Fort Wayne and Cleveland State, but it finished ahead of Dayton, Ohio, Robert Morris, Northern Kentucky, Youngstown State, Green Bay, Detroit Mercy and St. Frances-Pennsylvania.
Next up for the Golden Grizzlies is the Musketeers Classic, hosted by Xavier in Cincinnati, Ohio. That event will take place on Oct. 16-17.
Women’s soccer
It was an undefeated week for the women’s soccer team, which finished the two-match week with a draw and a win.
Oakland started the week on Thursday at the Oakland University Dome, as it hosted Robert Morris. Despite accumulating seven corner kicks compared to RMU’s zero on the afternoon, Oakland had to settle for a draw.
Frankie Mudd was the lone goal scorer for the Golden Grizzlies, who drew their third Horizon League match this season.
Oakland’s nine points in the conference put it in a three-way tie for fifth place in the league standings.
With four matches left to play in the regular season, it’s nearly impossible for OU to win the league, thanks to a perfect 6-0 start from Milwaukee, which leads the league by a significant margin.
Oakland will play IUPUI (Thursday) and Green Bay (Sunday) this week.
Men’s soccer
The men’s soccer team had just one match this week, and it was against the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons. Mikey Ketteman led the way for the Golden Grizzlies in the match with two goals, which was enough to lift the Golden Grizzlies to victory.
It was an extremely chippy match between the two conference foes. Each team recorded at least six cards — six yellow cards for Oakland, five yellows, and one red for Purdue Fort Wayne.
The Golden Grizzlies currently find themselves right in the mix for the regular-season title. IUPUI leads the conference with 10 points, but eight of the nine other teams in the conference are within four points, including Oakland.
With four conference matches left, Oakland will not face a team that is currently above it in the standings.
OU will take on Wright State at home this Saturday, Oct. 14, at 1 p.m.
Volleyball
After playing three road matches last week, the Oakland volleyball team was greeted with a much more relaxing week to start Oct. The Golden Grizzlies played just one match, and it was in the confines of the OU Credit Union O’rena.
Cleveland State was the opponent, as fans were encouraged to wear pink to “bring awareness to breast cancer research.”
Oakland cruised to a four-set victory, defeating Cleveland State at home for the first time since 2019.
The Golden Grizzlies now sit at 5-2 in the Horizon League, which puts them in a tie for third place with Wright State. The two teams trail only Milwaukee and Green Bay.
A big week looms for Oakland, which hosts the league’s leading teams, Milwaukee and Green Bay, this weekend on back-to-back days.
The Golden Grizzlies will get their shot at Milwaukee on Friday, Oct. 13, before taking on Green Bay on Saturday, Oct. 14.
OU could catapult itself into prime position atop the conference standings with two wins this week.
There are still 11 regular-season matches left, but two wins this week could prove Oakland to be one of the league’s best teams.
