Once again, home court advantage proved to be beneficial for Suzie Fritz and the K-State volleyball team.

After winning home matches against Texas A&M and Kansas last week, the No. 15 Wildcats (21-4, 11-3 Big 12 Conference) capped off a perfect 3-0 homestand with a 3-1 victory against Oklahoma (10-13, 6-9 Big 12) Wednesday at Ahearn Field House. K-State prevailed by scores of 25-20, 16-25, 25-23 and 25-20.

"The opportunity to play at home is big," said Fritz, who tied K-State's all-time mark with her 168th career win. "Our crowds have been terrific all week. We appreciate the community and we appreciate the student support."

The majority of the match was an uphill battle for the Wildcats, who had to overcome an early deficit in each of the night's four games.

The Sooners jumped out to an early five-point lead in the opening game before K-State clawed back to take a 22-18 lead late in the game. The Wildcats eliminated any chance of a comeback by closing out the game on a 3-2 run.

The second game had a similar beginning, but K-State wasn't able to respond. After establishing an early 6-1 lead, the Sooners continued to hack away at the Wildcats and came away with a nine-point win. Oklahoma led for the entire game.

The Sooners again jumped out to an early lead in the match's third game, but K-State caught fire midway through the game. The Wildcats, down 13-17, went on a 7-0 run to take the lead and force a momentum swing. Oklahoma didn't go quietly, however, as the team forced a 23-23 tie before K-State scored two straight points to preserve the win.

Neither team seemed to have an advantage in the fourth game, as they traded the lead four times before either team reached five points. However, the Wildcats gained control after a 5-1 run put them on top, 9-5. Oklahoma responded with a 4-0 run to narrow the gap to 10-9, but that's as close as the Sooners got. A series of short runs by K-State increased its lead to 23-15 late in the game, but a late Sooner charge closed the Wildcats' lead to 24-20. However, a kill by senior outside hitter Jenny Jantsch extinguished Oklahoma's comeback bid and clinched the match for K-State.

After the match, Fritz said K-State was sloppy and said Oklahoma's unique style of play kept the Wildcats on their toes all night.

"[Tonight was] not our best performance, but it's a team that really keeps you off balance," she said. "They make it really difficult to find ways to kill balls. They play very spontaneous volleyball."

As they have been for much of the season, the Wildcats were led by Rita Liliom and Nataly Korobkova. The senior outside hitters led all scorers with 22 and 14 kills, respectively. Bridget Laplante paced Oklahoma with 14 kills on the night. She was the only Sooner to record double-digit kills in the match. 

K-State will return to action when the Wildcats travel to Omaha, Neb., to take on No. 3 Nebraska. First serve is set for 7 p.m. at Nebraska Coliseum.

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