Senior Day Set for Saturday Against Buffs

MANHATTAN, Kan. - Kansas State volleyball returns home for a match against Colorado on Saturday at 2 p.m. to honor this year's senior class. Senior Day will honor middle blocker Kelsey Chipman, setter Soriana Pacheco and manager Melissa Watson with the Wildcats looking to get the season sweep over the Buffaloes.

The Wildcats are coming off a loss at No. 2 Texas on Wednesday night and eyeing a victory to pull closer in the all-time series with Colorado as K-State has won 21 of the 46 meetings with the Buffaloes. Colorado will be fresh after its bye Wednesday and seeking to get its third win in conference play this season. Both of Colorado's Big 12 wins have come against Texas Tech.

Saturday's match will also be Bring Your A Game Day and youth fans can get into the match for free with an A on their report cards. Campers from this summer's Wildcat Volleyball Camps can attend the match free as well by checking in at the ticket office at Ahearn before the match.

On The Airwaves
K-State's match against Colorado can be heard on KMAN1350 with Brian Smoller calling the action and Rob Voelker assisting with color commentary. It can also be heard on the station's Web site www.kman1350.com.

Online
Live audio and stats will be available through k-statesports.com for fans wanting to track the action live on the web. An audio only feed is through the Wildcat Audio Package.

The Series
The Wildcats trail in the all-time series with Colorado by just two games after K-State claimed the first match this season. The Buffaloes hold a advantage 25-21. K-State has taken control of the series of late winning 12 of 17 matches during the Suzie Fritz era.

K-State has won five straight matches against Colorado tying the longest winning streak by the Wildcats in the series. The Wildcats won in four sets earlier this season in Boulder with dominating performances from both middle blockers Kelsey Chipman and Alex Muff.

The Coaches
Kansas State: Suzie Fritz (Florida Atlantic '94) is in her ninth year as head coach of the Wildcats she is the winningest coach in the program's history in terms of wins (181) and winning percentage (.656).

Colorado: Liz Kritza (Tulane 2000) is in her first year heading the Buffaloes. Before coming to Colorado, Kritza guided Tulane to its first Conference USA title and was named AVCA Midwest Coach of the Year in 2007 and 2008.

Scouting the Buffaloes
The Buffaloes are led by Becah Fogle as she is the team's top offensive and defensive player. She leads the team in kills at 3.27 per set and averages 2.54 digs. Fogle is joined by Rosie Steinhaus and Kerra Schroeder as Colorado's main offensive weapons. Steinhaus averages 2.80 kills with Schroeder posting 2.58. Fogle has posted eight double-doubles this season.

Colorado stands in 10th place in the Big 12 standings with a 2-15 record in league play. The Buffaloes opened the Big 12 schedule with three straight ranked opponents and lost their first seven conference matches before defeating Texas Tech in four sets. That win was followed by six straight losses before a visit to Lubbock to take on Texas Tech for the Buffaloes' other Big 12 win.

- k-statesports.com -