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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN
Kansas volleyball celebrates a Tayler Soucie block against Texas Tech on Oct. 25. Kansas will face TCU on Saturday.
Kansas hopes to start winning streak in Texas
@Corte_UDK
After defeating Texas Tech in Lawrence this past Saturday, Kansas volleyball has another opportunity to climb back over .500 in the Big 12 for the first time this season.
MATT CORTE
One of TCU's four straight losses came against Kansas in lawrence, with the Jayhawks sweeping TCU 3-0 in a lopsided match.
The Jayhawks (16-6, 4-4) had their first chance at a winning Big 12 record when they played Iowa State on Oct. 22, but the team's loss in five sets pushed them once again to a losing Big 12 record.
Traveling down to Fort Worth to play the Horned Frogs should produce a different outcome, as the layhawks have somewhat struggled on the road in the Big 12 this season.
Now facing a struggling UCU squad (12-10, 2-6) that has lost its last four Big 12 matches, Kansas finally has a golden opportunity to climb over the hill once and for all.
If Kansas wants to prove the team is a true threat on the road, beating TCU would be a start, and the one way they can assure a win a is to block, block, and block some more.
Through eight league
games, Kansas has a 2-2 record in away matches, with the kicker being that one of those away wins came against the worst team in the Big 12, Baylor.
Kansas used a total team blocking effort to defeat a weaker opponent in Texas Tech last week, and if they carry over that solid blocking to TCU, defeating the Horned Frogs should be just as easy.
The reason for this is because TCU is absolutely atrocious when it comes to killing the ball. The team ranks last in the Big 12 in kills per set, averaging 12 compared to Kansas' 13.48, and the Jayhawks also boast the third best block total with
"You can talk about attacks and kills, but blocking is the most intimidating fundamental in the game," said coach Ray Bechard. "When you start blocking teams, you can really change the game."
What helps Kansas is the team's ability to kill the ball efficiently and TCU's inability to stop those kills.
The Jayhawks currently sit at third in the Big 12 conference with a .238 team hitting percentage per set, while TCU's .268 opponent team hitting percentage places them last in conference.
2. 71 per set
Sadly for TCU, the only category in which they're better than Kansas is in aces, and still the Jayhawks can counteract that because of the teams 15.09 digs per set average, good for third in the Big 12.
After facing TCU on Saturday, Kansas will then play two teams they've already beaten in Baylor and Texas Tech the following week.
Not getting too ahead of ourselves, if Kansas is able to beat TCU and then subsequently beat the next two foes, it's 7-4 Big 12 record would put the team right back in the race for second place.
Edited by Logan Schlossberg
According to junior forward Ashley Williams, the dissatisfaction of not winning the Big 12 Conference this season has made the women's soccer team even hungrier than before. Coming off a strong 2-1 victory against Iowa State last weekend, the Jayhawks look to prove themselves in their last regular season game against Oklahoma in Norman, Okla., on Friday.
"I think we are feeling good," Williams said. "We are ready to end this part of the Big 12 because obviously we got close, but we didn't win it all. I think we are anxious to show everyone what next week will be like, so we're just ready to play Oklahoma and set the bar with what we're hoping to do next week."
LIZ KUHLMANN
@LizKuhlmannUDK
Jayhawks look to set bar for Big 12 tournament
The added incentive to a win against the Sooners this weekend is a second-place finish in the Big 12 should the Jayhawks pull off a victory.
GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN
The Sooners (8-7-3, 2-4-1), tallied eight shots against West Virginia last weekend and allowed 12 shots. Coach Mark Francis predicts Oklahoma will be a tough team to play, and Kansas will have to take advantage of every opportunity it's given.
"They're very athletic, they'll be hard to take down." Francis said. "We have to play our game. Be disciplined in some of the small, key moments of the game. We missed out on some finished last weekend that we should've nailed and we'll have to make those this weekend. We gave up a goal at the end when we lost that focus. Those small details at this point in the season can be crucial. We have to pay attention to those small things."
Ali Kimura heads the ball inside the goal box against Iowa State on Oct. 24. Kansas plays Oklahoma this weekend, a team that coach Mark Francis says is "very athletic" and "hard to take down."
Williams said any team in the Big 12 is guaranteed to be a challenge, and to sleep on
ASHLEY WILLIAMS Junior forward
or take any opponent lightly would be a mistake.
"We are ready to end this part of the Big 12 because obviously we got close, but we didn't win it all."
"I'm looking forward to hopefully playing well," Francis said. "Going into the postseason next week coming off a good performance."
for what next week is going to be like. I feel like we still have something to prove. We have to play our game and play how we know how to play, and focus on one game at a time."
Francis said discipline and focus will be key to pulling out the win.
"We know that we need to come prepared and ready to play a good team," Williams said. "We have to set the bar
Edited by Logan Schlossberg