Youngstown State University
12-12,8-5Horizon
Oakland
11-14,6-7Horizon
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland | 14 | 22 | 25 | 23 | 1 |
| Youngstown St. | 25 | 25 | 20 | 25 | 3 |
11/6/2026 6:25:00 PM | Volleyball
The Youngstown State volleyball team picked up a key 3-1 win over Oakland on Friday at the Zidian Family Arena in the Beeghly Center.
The Penguins won sets one (25-14), two (25-21) and four (25-23) to claim the win over the Golden Grizzles. Oakland won the third set, 25-20. With the victory, YSU improves to 12-12 overall and 8-5 in Horizon League play while OU falls to 11-14 and 6-7. The win also allowed YSU to clinch a spot in the Horizon League Championship later this month.
For the match, YSU hit .206 while Oakland finished at a .145 clip. Kylie Surratt, Layne Graffice and Abbie Householder all had 10 kills while Ava Stratton added eight. Wrigley Takats had a match-high eight blocks while Journey Nicola had 1 digs.
YSU bolted out to a 6-1 lead in the first set and never looked back en route to a 25-14 win. For the set, the Penguins hit .207 while holding OU to a -.026 percentage. Oakland had six kills compared to seven errors to hit minus for the frame.
The closest Oakland could get in the set was 8-5. From there, YSU increased its lead by rattling off four of the next five points taking a 12-6 lead on a Stratton kill. A Takats ace put the Guins in front 20-10 before an ace by Householder ended the set. Surratt had four kills while Nicola had six digs for the Guins.
In the second set, the Penguins kept the heat on, jumping out to an 8-3 lead. The Golden Grizzlies cut the deficit to 9-5 but three quick YSU kills forced a timeout at 12-5 after a Surratt smash. Out of the timeout, OU scored three quick points, but the Guins answered with three straight of their own before the media stoppage, leading 15-9.
YSU led 19-10 before OU crept within 23-21 following an ace by Delaney Stern. But the Guins held on powered by two Surratt kills for a 25-22 set victory.
After two sets, the Guins were hitting a blistering .311 while Oakland improved to .080 percent. Youngstown State hit .406 in the second set with 17 kills and just four errors.
Oakland took its first lead of the match by scoring the first two points of the third set. It was short lived as the Penguins responded with four consecutive points. Later in the set, a Oakland service error put the Guins on top 16-11. However, the Golden Grizzlies battled back to tie the set at 19. From that point, Oakland won six of the next points to win the set.
In the set, Oakland hit .300 while YSU was at .108. The Guins had six errors and 10 kills in the frame while OU had 17 kills.
A back-and-forth fourth set came down to the wire. In a set that featured eight ties, YSU trailed 17-14 before knotting the set at 17-all. With the set tied at 18, the Guins scored the next three points building a 21-18 advantage. Householder smoked a ball down the line to make it 24-20, but Oakland fought off three match points to remain alive. On the final point, Molly Reck's attack went long and the Penguins earned the hard-fought win.
The Guins and Golden Grizzlies departed Youngstown following the contest and are set for a 4 p.m. rematch tomorrow at the OU Credit Union O'Rena in Rochester, Mich. The contest is YSU's last regular-season road game of the campaign.
