Wildcats Ready for Rematch with Mountaineers

MANHATTAN, Kan. – After a week off, the Kansas State volleyball team returns to action with a Saturday night matchup with the West Virginia Mountaineers at Ahearn Field House at 7 p.m.

K-State (12-9, 2-8 Big 12) seeks to snap its two-match losing skid as it dropped a home match vs. Oklahoma and a road tilt at Iowa State last week. West Virginia (10-13, 2-8 Big 12) comes to Manhattan having lost four of its last five outings.

The Mountaineers have taken the last three meetings in the series, including a straight-set decision earlier this season. K-State's three-match skid vs. WVU is the longest in the series' history.

Saturday's match will be broadcast live on ESPN3 and the ESPN app. Rob Voelker will be on the call on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with free, live audio available at K-StateSports.com/watch.

MATCH #22
K-STATE (12-9, 2-8 Big 12) vs. WEST VIRGINIA (10-13, 2-8 Big 12)
Saturday, November 3, 2018 // 7 p.m. // Ahearn Field House (5,000) // Manhattan, Kan.
Watch Online: ESPN3 // ESPN app
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Rob Voelker
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch | Live Stats
Promotion: Paint It Purple Ticket Package | Buy Tickets

K-STATE AT A GLANCE

K-State (12-9, 2-8 Big 12) went 0-2 last week after a pair of four-set losses last week: at Iowa State last Friday night and vs. Oklahoma last Wednesday at Ahearn Field House.
Against the Cyclones, Sarah Dixon (43 assists, 10 digs) and Kylee Zumach (14 kills, 17 digs) each turned in double-doubles.
Zumach leads the team with nine double-doubles this year while Dixon is second with eight.
Junior Elle Sandbothe recorded 11 kills while hitting a career-best .647 (0 errors, 17 attacks) at Iowa State.
Senior Alyssa Schultejans added 11 kills.
Four Wildcats reached double-digit digs, led by senior libero Devan Fairfield's 19, her seventh straight match with at least 10 digs.
K-State was held under a .200 team hitting percentage (.173) for the second straight match.
The Cats' loss in Ames marked the 11th consecutive road loss in the series with Iowa State, dating back to 2007.

SCOUTING WEST VIRGINIA

West Virginia (10-13, 2-8 Big 12) comes to Manhattan for its second meeting of the season after a three-set victory over K-State on Oct. 26 at WVU Coliseum.
The Mountaineers enter Saturday having lost four of their last five after a four-set home loss to Kansas Wednesday night.
WVU is 3-8 (2-5 away, 1-3 neutral) away from home this season and are 0-4 on the road in Big 12 play.
Katelyn Evans leads the Mountaineers with 3.17 kills per set (10th in the Big 12) while Katie DeMeo is the team leader with 1.40 blocks a set (2nd in the Big 12).
In conference-only matches, WVU ranks last in hitting percentage, kills/set, assists/set and digs/set.
West Virginia and K-State own the bottom two spots in opponent hitting percentage in league play.

INSIDE THE SERIES

K-State leads the all-time series with West Virginia, 8-5, going back to 2012 when WVU joined the Big 12.
The Mountaineers have taken the last three meetings in the series, including a straight-set decision in Morgantown on Sept. 26.
K-State's three-match skid to WVU is its longest in the series history.
The Wildcats are 4-2 at Ahearn Field House vs. WVU, with the Mountaineers winning in three sets in their last trip in 2017.
Head coach Suzie Fritz is 8-5 in her career against West Virginia and is 4-2 at home.

BY THE NUMBERS

K-State is 12-0 this season when hitting at a higher efficiency than its opponent and are 9-0 when producing more kills.
When holding its opponent to a .200 hitting percentage or lower, K-State is 8-0.
Conversely, the Wildcats are 0-9 when trailing in attack percentage and 1-4 when being held under .200 as a team.
The Cats have picked up five or more service aces 10 times this season and are 7-3 in those matches.
The Wildcat defense has reached double-digit blocks six times this year, going 4-2 in such matches.
Redshirt senior Kylee Zumach leads K-State with 14 matches with 10 or more kills, as the Cats are 10-4 when she reaches double figures and 4-2 with at least 15 kills.
K-State and its opponents have each tallied exactly 1,299.0 total points this season.

QUICK SAND

K-State middle blocker Elle Sandbothe has reached double-digit kills in four of the last five matches.
Sandbothe registered 11 kills on 17 swings without an error for a career-high .647 hitting percentage Friday at Iowa State.
The Lee's Summit product has at least five blocks in three of the last five matches.
Sandbothe led the Cats with seven blocks last Wednesday against Oklahoma to go with 10 kills.
She registered a career-best 12 kills while hitting .500 in the Cats' four-set win over rival Kansas on Oct. 17.
Sandbothe has moved into fourth in overall matches and fifth in Big 12 play in hitting percentage.

SAY HEY KID

In the first four starts of her K-State career, redshirt freshman outside hitter Brooke Heyne posted three matches with double-digit kills.
Heyne produced a career-best 15 kills while hitting .467 at No. 24 Baylor on Oct. 20 on her way to being tabbed Big 12 Rookie of the Week.
Over the last five matches, she has a team-high 3.19 kills per set while hitting .219 with 23 digs and five blocks.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Sarah Dixon

Devan Fairfield

Brooke Heyne

Elle Sandbothe

Alyssa Schultejans

Kylee Zumach

Kansas State University Athletics