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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2014
PAGE 7B
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BEN LIPDWITZ/KANSAN
Senior outside hitter Sara McClinton and sophomore middle blocker Janae Hall go up for a block against Texas on Oct. 5. After defeating Baylor last Friday, Kansas is looking for another win against TCU on Saturday.
Jayhawks seek second conference win against TCU
MATT CORTE
@Corte_UDK
Since capturing its first win in the Big 12 against Baylor last Friday, Kansas volleyball has transformed back into the team it resembled during non-conference play.
Now, Kansas will look to carry that momentum into Horeisi Family Athletics Center on Saturday night, hoping to claim its first home conference win of the season in the "Jayhawks for a Cure" match against Texas Christian University.
Kansas has been taken to a fourth or fifth set in every conference match, which is why finding a way to grind out a win like it did against Baylor becomes even more important.
"We were down 19-15 in the third and 21-18 in the fourth, and had to go on a 7-1 run to finish the match," coach Ray Bechard said. "We had to make some plays to do that, it wasn't just their errors — especially in the third set. Tiana Dockery served a tough ball and made a great dig. She and Sara [McClinton] put a ton of
balls away, 35 kills between them, so that was huge."
Unlike the match against Baylor, it'll take heroes from more than a few players to get a win against the Horned Frogs.
TCU (12-7, 2-3) is currently tied for fourth in the Big 12, with a majority of the team's success coming from its ability to attack the ball efficiently.
So far in overall play, the Horned Frogs rank third in the Big 12 with a .270 hitting percentage, and the team's 926 kills are third overall. In conference matches alone, TCU's .242 hitting percentage ranks third, and its 249 kills are the fourth most.
A majority of TCU's ability to consistently limit hitting errors doesn't come from one key player, but three.
Senior outside hitters Stephanie Holland and Mattie Burleson rank sixth and seventh in conference play with .321 and .313 hitting percentages respectively, while sophomore middle blocker Regan McGuire's .294 hitting percentage places her tenth.
sophomore outside hitter Ashley Smith, who currently leads the team with 190 overall kills.
On top of those three, Kansas will have to stop TCU
At 108 aces this season, TCU has already totaled 18 more than second place Oklahoma in overall play, averaging 1.54 aces per set.
Sophomore setter Trisha Langley is behind most of those, with 31 aces on the season ranking her first in the Big 12.
But Kansas will find its advantage with TCU's inability to block.
The Horned Frogs rank last in the Big 12 in opponents hitting percentage, letting other teams hit a whopping .206 throughout this season.
On the other side, Kansas' overall .243 hitting percentage ranks in the Top Five of the Big 12.
If the Jayhawks are able to exploit TCU's poor blocking, while forcing the team's efficient hitters to commit errors, then Kansas should have no problem earning its first home conference win of the season.
Edited by Alyssa Scott and Jordan Fox
Kansas creeps closer to second conference title
BEN CARROLL
@Bcarroll91
Holding the nation's highest winning percentage, grasping onto a six-game winning streak and clinging to an undefeated conference record, the ninth ranked Kansas Jayhawks (14-1, 4-0) return to action this week end after Sunday's rare off-day. The Jayhawks will have two home games against arguably the two best teams in the Big 12.
"This is the first time we've
With just four games remaining in the regular season, the jayhawks are looking down on all other Big 12 teams in the standings and are seeking to inch closer to winning their second overall conference title and first since 2004. Kansas is coming off of its first ever victory on the road against Texas and will look to carry over that momentum into this weekend.
On Friday evening, Kansas kicks off against the Texas Tech Red Raiders (10-3-1, 1-1-1), who were projected to finish in second place in the Big 12, but is still winless in the conference. Tech was ranked ahead of many teams in the rankings early in the season, but has since dropped significantly. The Red Raiders are currently ranked No. 22 in the NSCAA poll. Kansas has won seven out of the last 10 matches between the two squads and will try to maintain its perfect conference record under the lights.
ever won at Texas in 20 years in the program," coach Mark Francis told KU Athletics on Sunday. "So these guys have done something that no other Kansas team has been able to do and hopefully we can keep that going."
On Sunday, Kansas will face off against its toughest match
of the season. The No.16 West Virginia (9-2-2, 2-0-1), who are in third place and were projected to win the Big 12 at the start of the season, venture to Rock Chalk Park hoping to gain ground on the conference-leading Jayhawks. The Mountaineers have been forceful in the Big 12 the last two years, winning two regular season conference titles and one Big 12 Tournament title in 2013. This season alone, WVU leads the Big 12 in shots, points, goals and assists.
"We got to get ready for next weekend," junior forward Ashley Williams told KU Athletics after the conclusion of Kansas' 1-0 victory in Austin, Texas on Friday. "It's good to celebrate tonight (Friday), but tomorrow (Saturday) we got to get ready for Friday."
Edited by Lyndsey Havens
Junior forward Ashley Williams moves in to score a goal against UKMC on Sept. 14. Kansas soccer will face off against both Texas Tech and West Virginia in Lawrence this weekend.
FRANK WIERICH/KANSAN
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