Oklahoma Christian School's fall athletic programs have reached the midway point of their seasons, with volleyball, football and cross country each building momentum as the Saints move toward the second half of the fall schedule.

Volleyball enters the week ranked No. 4 in Class 4A with a 14-6 record, football has won two straight to improve to 2-1, and the cross country program has already celebrated a milestone with the girls team's first meet victory in program history.
 

Volleyball Finds Rhythm Under New Staff

OCS volleyball has overcome a rocky start to build a 14-6 record in its first season under head coach Will Etheridge and his staff.

The Saints, currently ranked No. 4 in Class 4A, have picked up several notable victories, including a 2-0 win over Class 5A Bishop McGuinness at the Lincoln Christian Tournament. OCS also earned home sweeps against Casady and the OKC Storm.

Junior Sloane Rattay has joined the Saints this season after transferring from Stillwater, adding another piece to an OCS roster adjusting to a new coaching staff.

Several of the Saints' losses have come against quality competition. OCS opened the season with a five-set loss to Community Christian School before falling to Metro Christian at the Lincoln Christian Tournament and Mount St. Mary on the road.

OCS has also faced Class 4A opponent Heritage Hall twice. The Saints pushed the Chargers to five sets in a 3-2 home loss before the teams met again in the championship match of the Southwest Covenant Tournament, where Heritage Hall won 2-0.

The Saints begin an important stretch of their schedule Tuesday, Sept. 15, when they host Bethany. OCS travels to Crossings Christian on Thursday Sept. 17, before hosting Bishop McGuinness on Sept. 22.
 

Football Responds After Overtime Loss

OCS football has bounced back from a heartbreaking season-opening loss with consecutive wins to improve to 2-1.

The Saints opened the season Aug. 28 against Community Christian School, falling 35-34 in overtime.

Kicker NOAH WOHLGEMUTH opened the scoring with a field goal before NASH SAGE scored OCS' first touchdown. The Saints trailed 20-10 at halftime but responded in the second half behind two touchdowns from MATTHEW JONES to take a 24-20 lead.

After Community Christian regained the lead, Wohlgemuth connected on a 37-yard field goal to tie the game at 27 and force overtime.

Jones scored on OCS' opening possession of overtime, and Wohlgemuth's extra point gave the Saints a 34-27 advantage. Community Christian answered with a touchdown and elected to attempt a two-point conversion. The Royals converted to secure the 35-34 victory.

OCS responded six days later with a 51-22 win over Deer Creek JV in its home opener.

The Saints finished with 350 yards of total offense, including 250 passing and 100 rushing. OCS completed 81.8% of its passes and averaged 22.7 yards per completion.

OCS followed that performance with a 45-0 shutout of Crossings Christian in the Holy Bowl on Sept. 11.

The Saints produced 366 yards of offense, finishing with 190 passing and 176 rushing. The OCS defense forced five turnovers, intercepting four passes and recovering a fumble.

Since its one-point overtime loss in the opener, OCS has outscored its opponents 96-22.
 

Cross Country Girls Earn First Meet Victory

OCS cross country has produced several strong individual and team performances through its opening four meets, highlighted by a historic victory for the girls program.

The Saints opened the season Aug. 14 at the Heritage Hall Relay. VIOLET RUSSELL led the OCS girls with a two-mile time of 13 minutes, 1 second, while ISAAC ANDERSON led the boys in 10:01.

OCS faced Class 6A competition at the Deer Creek Meet on Aug. 22. Russell led the girls in 20:52, followed by JOPLYN GRIBBLE in 20:57. Anderson paced the boys with a time of 16:11, followed by TITUS RUSSELL in 17:27.

The Saints made program history Sept. 3 at the Carl Albert Meet when the girls captured their first team meet victory.

Gribble led OCS with a second-place individual finish in 12:53. Russell finished fifth in 13:20, while AVERY ESTES placed 10th, EVELYN ELIOT finished 11th and REESE PETTY placed 12th.

The OCS boys finished second as a team at Carl Albert.

Anderson led the boys with a second-place individual finish in 16:56. TITUS RUSSELL finished seventh in 18:09, followed by BEN BAKER in 18th, Andrew Troung in 20th and SHEPHERD CHANDLER in 21st.

OCS returned to action Sept. 12 at the Lincoln Christian Meet. The girls finished eighth as a team, led by Gribble's 22nd-place finish in 20:15. Russell followed in 20:52.

The boys finished ninth, with Anderson placing seventh overall in 16:24.
 

With the first half of the fall season complete, the Saints enter the coming weeks with postseason positioning and opportunities for continued growth ahead across all three programs.