CPHS Volleyball: Bixby tops Sandites 2-1 in tournament

The Charles Page High School varsity volleyball team (3-2) got off to a great start Friday morning at the Ed Dubie Field House, winning three-straight matches before falling 2-1 to Bixby (5-1) in a rematch of their Tuesday night season debut. The Spartans swept the Sandites 3-0 in conference play earlier this week, but this time Sand Springs stole a set and nearly won the Sandite Invitational match. 

Bixby won the first set 25-17 but the Sandites actually led in the latter half of the game. The Spartans jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead behind a block and a pair of kills from sophomore standout Olivia Vance, a State Qualifying transfer from Norman North. Sand Springs responded with a hot run from Sophie Singleton, who scored a kill and assisted on a pair of blocks for the 7-6 advantage. Both teams went on five-point streaks to trade the lead. Olivia Dewitt served back to back aces, and the Sandites had their final lead at 13-12. Vance threw down four more kills as the Spartans ran away with the set, and Abby Shook capped the victory with an ace. 

The give and take continued into set two as Bixby turned a 5-1 deficit into a 7-6 lead. They never led after 9-8, but they tied it three times, including at 21-21, to keep the home team on its toes. Payton Robbins didn’t score once in the first set, but caught fire in the second game with two blocks and six kills, including the game winner at 25-22. 

The teams split the first eight rallies of set three but Bixby won four in a row to make it 7-4 and never relinquished their lead. Robbins scored a trio of kills to make it 11-9 but the Spartans held strong to finish 15-10. 

Robbins scored a team-high 11 kills, Tehya Johnson had 19 assists, and Madison Blaylock had 15 digs. Vance led all scorers with 17 kills and two blocks. 

Sand Springs will return to action Saturday at 9:00 a.m. against Edison Prep (2-3), at 11:00 a.m. against Bishop Kelley JV, and at 2:00 p.m. against Northeast Oklahoma Association of Homeschools (NOAH). The tournament is round-robin and will not have a championship match.