KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – The NAIA leader in blocks per set had another monster afternoon, recording a season-high 12 blocks, leading Oregon Tech to their fifth-straight win, a 25-23, 15-25, 25-21, 25-16 victory over Simpson University at Danny Miles Court.
OIT (6-2) improves to 37-1 all-time against their California counterparts, winning for the 16th-straight time against SU.
Thayer becomes the first Lady Owls player to post four matches with 10-or-more blocks, leading a Tech defense that combined for 18 terminations on the day.
Kaliko Schilling had 12 kills,
Alexa Gugliotta had seven kills and five blocks,
Taryn Ramsay finished with 35 assists, six digs and five blocks, with
Kaley Whalen leading all players with 27 digs.
Tech broke a 23-23 deadlock in Set 1, the tenth tie of the period, thanks to a service error, with Schilling capitalizing on an overpass to hammer home the clinching point.
The Redhawks (2-12) dominated Set 2, using an 8-0 run midway through the frame to break an 11-11 tie.
OIT trailed 10-7 in Set 3, before
Tiffini Goss and Gugliotta combined on a pair of blocks and each had two kills in a 9-1 run that gave the Owls the lead. The lead grew to 21-16 on back to back combo-blocks from Ramsay and Thayer – grabbing the match lead.
Thayer dominated crunch time in Set 4, recording two kills and two blocks in a game-ending 10-2 run that broke open a 15-14 OIT lead.
SU was led by Mariah Napoleon's 16 kills and Brooklyn Jimenez's 22 digs.
The Owls continue their homestand next weekend hosting Walla Walla and Lewis-Clark State.
