The Oakland women’s volleyball team concluded an eventful weekend with two wins over Oral Roberts and Southern Utah.

On Friday night, the Golden Grizzlies beat Oral Roberts in straight sets 25-22, 25-23 and 25-22.

OU overcame early deficits in the first and third sets to win the match.

Head coach Rob Beam called the meeting with ORU a “very well contested match,” and didn’t expect anything less from a rival team in first place in the Summit League.

“Both teams played at a high level,” Beam said. “The (OU) ball control was good, (and) the defense was good.”

The front row for OU came up big with a solid performance.

Middle hitters, Jenna Lange and Brittany Holbrook, along with right side hitter Allison Bell combined for 22 kills and nine total blocks. Bell and Lange teamed up for a block to start a run in which the Grizzlies scored three straight points to win the first set.

Bell also recorded her team leading 17th service ace of the season.

Lange however credits the defense of the back row for the success of the front row hitters.

“Our defense just gave us a lot of opportunities,” Lange said. “They had some great digs and so we got some great transition plays, so we really just owe it to them.”

Defensively, Alli Kirk led the team with 19 digs while Meghan Bray had 12 to go along with her seven kills.

The following night, Kirk and Bray both reached career milestones as the Grizzlies beat Southern Utah in straight sets.

Kirk reached 1,000 career digs in the first set which the Grizzlies won 25-17. In the second set, Bray recorded career kill number 1,000 on her way to helping her team with that set 25-18.

“It’s just an honor,” Bray said. “The setters are very good on our team and putting the ball where they need to put it.”

The Grizzlies were already in a celebratory mood after these milestones were reached, but were able to officially celebrate after winning the third set 25-16.

“Meghan and Alli both have been key contributors their entire career since their freshmen year,” Beam said. “To get to a thousand digs and a thousand kills on the same night is pretty special, I’ve never had that happen before.”

Kirk said that she and Bray were racing to see who could reach their milestone first.

“I beat her, but I’m really proud of her,” Kirk said. “She deserved it.”

Bell led the team with 11 kills while Lange had 10, along with a solo block. Each had three block assists.

The Golden Grizzlies controlled the entire match as they trailed only briefly at the start of the first and third sets.

“After the emotional win last night, to come back with that amount of focus and intensity definitely shows some maturity for our team,” Beam said.

The Grizzlies are now 14-10 (8-6 Summit League). With four matches remaining in the regular season, they are currently in fourth place in the league.

Next week, the Golden Grizzlies play South Dakota on Nov. 4 and UMKC on the road on Nov. 6.

They conclude the regular season with home matches against IUPUI on Nov. 11 and Western Illinois on Nov. 12 for Senior Night.

The team is looking to reach the Summit League Tournament for the first time.

Kirk has not lost sight of the team’s overall goal, even after reaching her personal milestone.

“This season is going to be highlighted by us going to the conference tournament for the first time,” Kirk said, “That’s the accomplishment I’m looking forward to.”