Cats Open 2019 at Wolfpack Invitational

Friday, August 30

Raleigh, N.C.

6 p.m.

Kansas State University

N.C. State

K-State's Brynn Carlson, Megan Vernon, and Sarah Dixon celebrate a point against Missouri at Ahearn Field House.

Aug 28, 2019 | Volleyball

Watch (NC State)Listen Live Stats Match Notes

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State is set to embark on its 2019 campaign at the Wolfpack Invitational, beginning with a 6 p.m. CT match against host NC State on Friday at Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Following the season opener with the Wolfpack, the Wildcats will play a Saturday doubleheader against Austin Peay and Maryland. First serve against the Governors is set for 10 a.m. before the nightcap with the Terrapins at 6 p.m.

Friday's match vs. NC State will air on ACC Network Extra and stream on the ESPN app. Radio coverage on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) will be available for the first two matches of the weekend while all three will have free, streaming audio at K-StateSports.com/watch.

The Cats open their home slate on September 5 against Clemson, as part of the annual K-State Invitational held at Bramlage Coliseum. K-State will also square off with Omaha on September 6 and Central Arkansas on September 7. Tickets can be purchased by calling (800) 221-CATS, stopping by the K-State Ticket Office in Bramlage Coliseum or by visiting here.

MATCH #1
K-STATE (0-0) at NC STATE (0-0)
Friday, August 30 // 6 p.m. CT // Reynolds Coliseum (5,500) // Raleigh, N.C.
Watch: ACCNX // WatchESPN
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Rob Voelker
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch | Live Stats

MATCH #2
K-STATE (0-0) vs. AUSTIN PEAY (0-0)
Saturday, August 31 // 10 a.m. CT // Reynolds Coliseum (5,500) // Raleigh, N.C.
Watch: N/A
Radio: KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Rob Voelker
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch | Live Stats

MATCH #3
K-STATE (0-0) vs. MARYLAND (0-0)
Saturday, August 31 // 6 p.m. CT // Reynolds Coliseum (5,500) // Raleigh, N.C.
Watch: N/A
Radio: N/A
Listen Online: K-StateSports.com/watch | Live Stats

K-STATE AT A GLANCE

K-State opens its 46th season of volleyball at the Wolfpack Invitational in Raleigh, North Carolina, where it will face host NC State, Austin Peay and Maryland beginning Friday.
In 2018, the Wildcats went 15-12 (5-11 Big 12) and finished in eighth place in the Big 12 standings.
Seven letterwinners return for the Cats, including a pair of seniors in setter Sarah Dixon and defensive specialist Mckenzi Weber.
K-State lost eight letterwinners (six seniors) from its 2018 squad.
Dixon, along with sophomore Gloria Mutiri, return as AVCA All-America Honorable Mention selections.
Mutiri was the Wildcats' lone representative on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team while the Cats were picked fifth in the preseason coaches' poll.
K-State's incoming five-member freshman class was ranked No. 20 in the nation, according to PrepVolleyball.com.
The class includes setter Teana Adams-Kaonohi, outside hitter Anna Dixon, liberos Loren Hinkle and Dru Kuck along with middle blocker Faith Hammontree.
The Cats' 2019 roster features 13 underclassmen - the third-highest total in the Fritz era and most since 2014.

SCOUTING NC STATE

NC State ended the 2018 season with a 15-13 mark (9-9 ACC) and in a seventh-place tie in the ACC standings.
The Wolfpack landed ninth in the ACC's preseason coaches' poll while junior opposite Melissa Evans was voted to the 2019 Preseason All-ACC Team for the second straight season.
Evans was second on her team with 349 kills (3.17 per set) and 18 service aces.
Four starters return for NC State, including senior middle blocker Lauryn Terry, who hit .310 and led the team with 96 total blocks.
NC State ended 2018 by winning five of its last six matches, including a stretch of five straight victories, and went 9-5 at Reynolds Coliseum.

SCOUTING AUSTIN PEAY

Austin Peay is the back-to-back defending regular-season champion of the Ohio Valley Conference after a 27-5 (14-2 OVC) campaign in 2018.
The Governors were picked to finish second in the OVC's preseason coaches' poll behind Murray State.
Junior outside hitter Brooke Moore and senior libero Ginny Busse were each named to the All-OVC Preseason Team.
Moore is the Govs leading returning hitter with 370 kills last season (3.08 per set).
Busse led the defense with 4.35 digs per set last season and currently has 1,436 career digs - ninth-most in program history.
Austin Peay brings back 10 returners to go with five newcomers for 2019 and graduated three-time OVC Setter of the Year Kristen Stucker.
The Governors begin the season with 18 consecutive matches away from home with their home opener on Oct. 4 against Southeast Missouri.

SCOUTING MARYLAND

Maryland turned in an eighth-place finish in the Big Ten a season ago, going 9-11 in conference and 18-14 overall.
The Terrapins were slotted in 10th in the Big Ten's preseason coaches' poll while junior outside hitter Erika Pritchard earned a place on the Preseason All-Big Ten Team.
Pritchard's selection was the first preseason all-conference since Maryland joined the Big Ten in 2014.
The 2018 First Team All-Big Ten selection led the Big Ten with 4.32 kills per set while her 493 kills marked the second-highest single-season total in program history.
The Terps retain all six starters plus their libero while only losing two letterwinners from a season ago, bringing back 12 letterwinners in all.

INSIDE THE SERIES

K-State leads the all-time series with NC State, 1-0, taking the only previous meeting in four sets in 1996.
This will mark the first-ever meeting between the Wildcats and Austin Peay, while the all-time series with Maryland is tied 1-1.
The Cats swept the last meeting with the Terps back in 2004 while Maryland defeated K-State 3-1 in 1997.
Fritz is a combined 1-0 against the field at the Wolfpack Invitational.
Fritz owns career marks of 9-7 against teams from the ACC, 4-0 against the Ohio Valley Conference and is 9-33 vs. the Big Ten.

OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT

K-State has won its last seven season openers while head coach Suzie Fritz is 12-6 in the season-opening match in her career.
Since 2001, K-State is 166-55 (.751) in non-conference matches, including a 10-1 mark a season ago.

YOUTH MOVEMENT

K-State's 2019 roster features a total of 13 freshmen and sophomores (including redshirts) - its highest total since 2014 and third-most in the Fritz era (since 2001).
The combined 666 career sets played among returners are the Cats' fewest since 2009 (537).
The nine freshmen (four redshirts) match the highest number in the Fritz era.
Five incoming true freshmen help comprise the nation's 20th-best recruiting class, according to PrepVolleyball.com.

BUT DON'T BE FOOLED

Despite K-State's youth on paper, the 2019 Wildcats gained extra experience playing together through the spring and summer.
Four of the five incoming freshmen graduated high school early and joined the program in January to train together all through the spring.
Additionally, K-State was able to go on a 10-day foreign tour in Brazil from May 28-June 8 that included training with the Brazilian U20 National Team and exhibition matches with professional club teams.
While in Brazil, the Cats spent three days at the Brazilian Olympic Training Center in Saquerema with the U20 National Team before traveling to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo to compete against club teams that included Fluminense, Pinheiros and Sao Caetano.

U-S-A! U-S-A!

Incoming freshman outside hitter Anna Dixon earned a spot on USA Volleyball's Women's Junior National Team and competed at the 2019 FIVB U20 World Championship in Mexico from July 12-21.
Three Wildcat underclassmen - Teana Adams-Kaonohi, Brynn Carlson and Gloria Mutiri - were each selected to the U.S. Women's Collegiate National Team-Anaheim roster.
The trio trained and competed in Anaheim, Calif., from June 23-29 at the home of the Olympic National Team.

DISHING DIXON

Redshirt senior setter Sarah Dixon enters her fourth season with the program and third as the starting setter for the Wildcats.
A season ago, Dixon earned AVCA All-America Honorable Mention and AVCA All-Midwest Region First Team honors.
Dixon is the fifth starting senior setter in Fritz's tenure, as the previous four have turned in 20-win seasons along with an NCAA Tournament berth.
Dixon dished out a career-high 1,099 assists last season and finished second in the Big 12 with 11.21 assists per set after ending the regular season as the league's category leader.

THE GLO SHOW

Joining Dixon as an AVCA All-America Honorable Mention selection is sophomore opposite Gloria Mutiri, making just the set of K-State teammates to return as All-Americans and first since 2014 (Katie Brand, Kylee Zumach).
Mutiri is the team's top returner in total kills (271), kills per set (2.77) and total blocks (67).
Mutiri, who primarily played six rotations her freshman season, also compiled 192 digs - second among returners - on her way to being tabbed AVCA Midwest Region Freshman of the Year.
After being named to Second Team All-Big 12 and All-Freshman Team a season ago, Mutiri was the lone Wildcat named to the 2019 Preseason All-Big 12 Team.

PEY DAY

Redshirt junior middle blocker Peyton Williams has led K-State in hitting percentage in each of the last two seasons and has a career efficiency of .315.
The Wildcats' two-sport star currently ranks fifth in program history in the rally-scoring era (since 2001) in hitting percentage.
Williams is the first Wildcat to lead the team in hitting percentage and hit above .300 in consecutive seasons since 2001-12 (Kaitlynn Pelger).