During the match Wednesday night, freshman defensive specialist Maria Fernanda passes the ball. The Sooners beat Colorado game 3-0. Neil McGlohon/The Daily

Add “winning season” to the 2009 Sooner volleyball team’s list of accomplishments.

With its win in four tough sets over Kansas State Saturday, OU (15-7, 8-5) guaranteed a winning season and could easily earn a spot in the NCAA tournament.

The opening set saw 18 ties and six lead changes. Kansas State jumped out 2-0 early, but the Sooners tied it back up at 6-6. The teams scored back and forth until OU gained a 10-9 advantage.

OU tried several drop hits early, but Kansas State defended them well. The Wildcats struggled to defend Suzy Boulavsky’s left-handed attacks, though.

The lead changed hands a couple of times, and OU emerged with a 24-22 set-point opportunity to put the game away. KSU pulled it to 24-23, and the Sooners were unable to capitalize on two other set-point chances.

The Wildcats stole the lead at 27-26 and finally closed the game three set-point chances later to win 31-29.

“The first set could have gone either way,” OU coach Santiago Restrepo said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t get the ball to fall our way at the end, but the team rallied back and played well.”

Boulavsky finished with 8 kills in the first set alone for the Sooners.

The second set started how the first ended, tied at each point, until OU grabbed the lone lead change with a 12-10 advantage. The Sooners pulled away slowly with a mix of smarter attacks and Wildcat errors to win 25-20.

OU had an 85-percent sideout percentage in the set to get nearly half of its total points when Kansas State served.

The Sooners proved they’ve broken this season’s third-set slump by coming back after the break relaxed, smiling and having fun.

It paid off.

Against a visibly exhausted Kansas State squad, OU reacted quickly, attacked with power and killed a few spiders that wandered onto the court. Senior Bridget Laplante had seven kills and one block in the third set, and the Sooners won 25-21.

“In the Big 12, we’re the team that has the most digs, we have the best defense, we’re used to those long rallies,” Boulavsky said. “We did lose that first game, but after that we knew they were tired and done.”

The final set was almost all OU. The Sooners grabbed the lead and didn’t relinquish it, utilizing a mix of drop hits and powerful corner attacks from Boulavsky and junior Francie Ekwerekwu to finish off the Wildcats 25-17.

“You have to have the courage to try something new,” Boulavsky said. “If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work. I just try to do different things because it messes with their heads.”

OU was held to a .197 attack percentage in the opening set, but the Sooners improved each set to raise the overall percentage to .246, helped along by a .366 clip in the final set.

Both teams had seven blocks, but the Sooners edged KSU 97-92 in digs.

Brianne Barker, sophomore setter, led the Sooners defensively with 22 digs and added 49 assists for her 17th double-double of the season. She also had one kill. Freshman María Fernanda had 19 digs and a service ace.

Four Sooners finished with double-digit kills, led by Boulavsky with 17 kills. She also had 16 digs for her second career double-double.

Ekwerekwu’s 17 kills and five block assists were both season highs.

Bridget Laplante and Sarah Freudenrich had 10 kills apiece, followed by Caitlin Higgins’ eight kills and two killed spiders. Laplante also had 17 digs and five block assists.

The Sooners travel to Waco to face No. 25 Baylor at 7 p.m. Wednesday.