REDDING, Calif. – Oregon Tech underclassmen came through in a big way, leading the Lady Owls to a pair of victories over Simpson University in a rare volleyball doubleheader in the Grant Center.
 
True freshman Willow Jacobson came off the bench for a combined 16 kills on the day, sophomore Kate Hicks had a combined eight blocks and sophomore Paige Tevelde logged her first career double-double, helping the Owls (2-2) extend their overall win streak against the Redhawks to 13 matches.
 
OIT grinded out a 21-25, 25-16, 25-22, 18-25, 15-9 win in the opener and quickly added a 25-17, 25-9, 25-16 victory to even their season record.
 
"What a great opportunity for the team to deal with some adversity and figure out a way to success," said OIT head coach Dr. Ken Murczek. "I was extremely proud of how players came off the bench and helped both in the front row and from behind the service line."
 
The Redhawks (0-4) lived and died at the service line in Match 1 – combining for 11 aces, but committing 21 serving errors. The hosts have five aces in Set 1, including a pair in a decisive 5-0 run that broke a 12-12 tie.
 
Tech answered in Set 2 and Set 3 to take the match lead. Kaylin Talonen recorded a pair of kills in a 6-1 run in Set 2 to give the Owls a 14-7 lead, while following 11 ties in Set 3, Jacobson hammered a spike and combined with Hicks on a block to break a 18-18 stalemate – helping OIT stave off the hosts.
 
SU didn't quit – going wire-to-wire in Set 4 – using a late 4-0 run to force the winner-take-all frame. In the finale, Talonen went to work, recording four kills among Tech's first 10 points, with an Ashley Ripplinger kill and stuff block putting the match away.
 
Talonen led OIT with 14 kills and Molly Grace added nine. Nicole Reyes logged five of her seven kills in Set 2, with Jacobson recording six kills. Tevelde had 19 assists and 13 digs, Aubrey Kievit had 20 digs and two aces, with Kaley Whalen posting a career-best 14 digs.
 
Madelyn Frick led SU with 17 kills and 12 digs and Tiana Nihipali recorded eight kills, 15 digs and five aces.
 
Following a quick break, OIT kept the pressure on in Match 2. Jacobson ripped a winner down the line and Kievit added the first of three aces in a 4-0 run that gave the visitors an 18-12 lead in Set 1.
 
Set 2 was dominated late by the Owls, scoring 15 of the final 17 points – including two kills each from Talonen, Hicks, Jacobson and Savanna Sterck.  Tech put the match away late in Set 3, as two Hicks kills and two Brooke Cassidy aces fueled a 6-0 run to cap the victory.
 
Jacobson had a career-best 10 kills, with Ripplinger posting seven kills, three aces and three blocks. Both Hicks and Talonen finished with six kills, Tevelde had 12 assists and Kievit led the way with nine digs.  OIT has a stellar .346 team attack percentage and added 11 aces, while holding SU to a .071 hitting clip.
 
"We got better as the day went on and finish the last set of the second match earning 20 of our 25 points," Murczek said. "I look forward to watching some film with the team tomorrow before we start preparing for William Jessup."
 
The Lady Owls close out their non-conference schedule with a pair of late week matches in Rocklin, Calif. – meeting William Jessup on Thursday and Menlo on Friday.