Wildcats, Jayhawks Prepped for Second Sunflower Showdown

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Kansas State and Kansas renew their rivalry Wednesday night at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center with the season's second Dillons Sunflower Showdown, set for a 6:30 p.m. first serve.

K-State (13-11, 3-10 Big 12) upended then-No. 22 Kansas in the year's first matchup in Manhattan in four sets and looks to sweep the season series for the first time since 2011. KU (15-8, 8-4 Big 12) has dropped four of its last six matches overall.

Wednesday's match will be broadcast live on ESPN+ 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 #25
K-STATE (13-11, 3-10 Big 12) at KU (15-8, 8-4 Big 12)
Wednesday, November 14, 2018 // 6:30 p.m. // Horejsi Athletics Center (1,300) // Lawrence, Kan.
Watch Online: ESPN+ // ESPN app
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Rob Voelker
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch | Live Stats

K-STATE AT A GLANCE

K-State (13-11, 3-10 Big 12) sits in eighth place in the Big 12 standings after a straight-set home loss to Baylor Saturday night, 25-18, 25-17, 25-11.
The Wildcats split the season series with the Bears after trading road sweeps.
The Baylor defense limited K-State to season lows in both kills (28) and hitting percentage (.103) Saturday.
Redshirt senior Kylee Zumach turned in seven kills and seven digs to lead the Cats, the second straight match in which a Wildcat has failed to reach double-digit kills.
Freshmen Brooke Heyne and Gloria Mutiri each turned in five kills while middle blockers Elle Sandbothe and Peyton Williams both chipped in four.
The Wildcats had a 15-dig deficit (45-30) against the Bears and had five fewer service aces than BU (6-1).
The Cats have been swept in consecutive matches for the second time this season.

SCOUTING KU

Kansas (15-8, 8-4 Big 12) enters Wednesday's match having lost four of its last six matches, including a four-set loss at No. 5 Texas on Saturday.
The Jayhawks have three players averaging over 2.00 kills a set, led by Jada Burse with 3.54 kills/set, which ranks sixth in the Big 12.
KU leads the Big 12 in blocks per set at 2.93, which ranks fourth in the nation.
Rachel Langs (1.43) and Zoe Hill (1.24) each rank in the conference's top five in terms of blocks per set, with Langs leading the league in the category.
In conference-only matches, the Jayhawks average a league-best 3.12 blocks per set. Conversely, K-State ranks last with 1.77 blocks a set.
Burse is third in the league at 4.34 kills/set in league play.

INSIDE THE SERIES

K-State leads the all-time series, 64-52-1, going back to 1974.
The Wildcats' four-set win over then-No. 22 KU on Oct. 17 in Manhattan snapped a seven-match losing streak to the Jayhawks.
K-State looks for a season sweep of the Dillons Sunflower Showdown for the first time since 2011.
The Cats are 29-16 all-time in Lawrence, last winning in 2014 (3-2).
K-State is 2-11 in the last 13 matchups in the Dillons Sunflower Showdown and are 1-5 in the last six on the road in the series.
Head coach Suzie Fritz is 20-15 in her career vs. KU.

BY THE NUMBERS

K-State is 13-0 this season when hitting at a higher efficiency than its opponent and are 10-0 when producing more kills.
When holding its opponent to a .200 hitting percentage or lower, K-State is 9-0.
Conversely, the Wildcats are 0-11 when trailing in attack percentage and 1-6 when being held under .200 as a team.
The Cats have picked up five or more service aces 12 times this season and are 8-4 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.

MILESTONE WATCH

Earlier this season, head coach Suzie Fritz moved into third place on the Big 12's career wins list as a member of the conference.
Zumach is now in sole possession of second place in K-State history at 1,335 career kills in the rally-scoring era.
At 277 kills this year, Zumach sits 23 kills shy of her third 300-kill season.
Zsofia Gyimes is four blocks away from 100 career stuffs and six aces shy of 50 career aces.
Senior libero Devan Fairfield has 320 digs this season - a career high. Her previous single-season best was 187 in 2016.

OFFENSIVE OUTAGE

K-State produced season lows in hitting percentage and kills in back-to-back matches against Texas and Baylor last week.
The Cats were held to 28 kills on a .103 hitting percentage against the Bears, their lowest output in both categories since Oct. 11, 2017 at No. 23 Iowa State.
A Wildcat failed to reach double-digit kills in both matches - a first this season - as seven was the high for a K-State hitter in each match.
It marked the first time since 2013 that a Wildcat failed to reach double-figure kills in consecutive matches.
K-State has been held under .200 in four of its last five outings (1-4 in that span).

Wildcats, Jayhawks Prepped for Second Sunflower Showdown

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Devan Fairfield

Zsofia Gyimes

Brooke Heyne

Gloria Mutiri

Elle Sandbothe

Peyton Williams

Kylee Zumach

Kansas State University Athletics

Wildcats, Jayhawks Prepped for Second Sunflower Showdown

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Devan Fairfield

Zsofia Gyimes

Brooke Heyne

Gloria Mutiri

Elle Sandbothe

Peyton Williams

Kylee Zumach

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