No. 13 K-State Hosts Top-Ranked Texas Starting Friday

MANHATTAN, Kan. – Winners of three straight matches and boasting a No. 13 national ranking, the K-State Wildcats will host top-ranked Texas for a two-match series beginning Friday at 8 p.m. at Bramlage Coliseum.

Friday night's match, which was moved from a 4 p.m. start., will be televised nationally on ESPN2. K-State (3-1) earned its first national ranking since the 2016 following three straight Big 12 wins. Texas (6-0) enters as the unanimous No. 1 team in the nation, winning its first six contests.

Saturday's match will be broadcast on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app with Brain Smoller and former Wildcat Liz Wegner-Busch on the call. Fans can also listen to Rob Voelker on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM). Free, live audio is available at K-StateSports.com/watch.

General admission tickets will be available beginning Thursday at 8:30 a.m. at K-StateSports.com/tickets or on a walk-up basis on gameday. Due to capacity limitations and to avoid lines at the ticket windows, fans are encouraged to order digital tickets in advance. Fans are reminded that Bramlage Coliseum is limited to 25 percent capacity this season.

Doors will open 60 minutes prior to first serve. Due to construction at Bill Snyder Family Stadium, fans are asked to use the Northeast and Southwest entrances. Click here to see all the 2020 gameday policies.

MATCH #5
#13 K-STATE (3-1, 3-1 BIG 12) vs. #1 TEXAS (6-0, 6-0 BIG 12)
Friday, October 16 // 8 p.m. // Bramlage Coliseum // Manhattan, Kan.
Watch: ESPN2 // Sam Gore (pxp), Jenny Hazelwood (analyst)
Mobile/Online: ESPN app/Watch ESPN
Radio: News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Rob Voelker
Listen: K-StateSports.com/watch
Live Stats | Tickets

MATCH #6
#13 K-STATE (3-1, 3-1 BIG 12) vs. #1 TEXAS (6-0, 6-0 BIG 12)
Saturday, October 17 // 6:30 p.m. // Bramlage Coliseum // Manhattan, Kan.
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ // Brian Smoller (pxp), Liz Wegner-Busch (analyst)
Radio: News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Rob Voelker
Listen: K-StateSports.com/watch
Live Stats | Tickets

K-STATE AT A GLANCE

Following its first road trip of the season and a bye week, K-State returns to Bramlage Coliseum to host top-ranked Texas on Friday and Saturday.
The Wildcats enter their third Big 12 series on a three-match winning streak after a pair of five-set wins at West Virginia (Oct. 1-2).
The Cats earned their first national ranking since the 2016 season, entering the AVCA Fall Coaches' Poll at No. 15 (Oct. 7) and are currently sit at No. 13.
Freshman Jayden Nembhard, in her first extended action, led K-State in both matches at WVU as she put down 24 and 19 kills, respectively, in the two wins.
Fellow freshman Aliyah Carter finished second in kills, turning in 16 and 17, respectively.
Two Wildcats took home Big 12 player-of-the-week awards on Oct. 6 following the series sweep, as Nembhard was tabbed Newcomer of the Week while Abigail Archibong was selected Defensive Player of the Week.
Archibong registered her first 10-block match of her career on Oct. 1 and is currently tied for second in the conference in blocks per set at 1.32.
The Cats have won three straight conference games for the first time since 2015.

SCOUTING TEXAS

Texas (6-0, 6-0 Big 12) enters the weekend series as the nation's No. 1-ranked team, opening the season winning its first six matches.
Logan Eggleston leads the nation at 5.21 kills per set and has claimed three consecutive Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week awards.
Eggleston, a junior, is hitting .351 this season (9th in Big 12) while also leading the league in aces per set at 0.47.
Defensively, Brionne Butler is the conference leader in blocks per set with 1.42 as the Longhorns allow a league-low .146 opponent hitting efficiency.
As a team, UT paces the Big 12 in hitting percentage, opponent hitting percentage, assists per set, kills per set and blocks per set.

INSIDE THE SERIES

Going back to 1981, Texas leads the all-time series 43-7.
K-State is 4-20 against the Longhorns in Manhattan, last winning in 2003 (3-2).
Texas has claimed the last 33 matchups, going back to K-State's Big 12 championship season of 2013.
The 33-match skid is the Cats' longest active losing streak against a single opponent.
Head coach Suzie Fritz is 3-35 in her career against UT and is 2-17 at home.
Texas has been ranked in the AVCA Coaches' Poll in each of the last 32 meetings, including being in the top 10 in the last 18 matchups.

CHECKING IN

K-State cracked the AVCA Fall Coaches' Poll on Oct. 7, checking in as the 15th-ranked team.
After an off weekend, the Wildcats are ranked for the second straight week, now at No. 13.
The poll, which only ranks the four conferences playing in the fall, ranks the top 15 teams during the fall season.
The No. 13 ranking marks the first time the Wildcats cracked the AVCA Coaches' Poll since the 2016 when they went as high as No. 23 during the regular season.
It is the first time K-State has been in the nation's top 15 since the 2012 season.
The Cats are 228-104 (.687) all-time as a ranked team.

AWARD WINNERS

Following K-State's two-match road sweep at West Virginia (Oct. 1-2), the Wildcats were honored with a pair of Big 12 player-of-the-week awards.
Redshirt sophomore middle blocker Abigail Archibong was tabbed Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week while freshman outside hitter Jayden Nembhard collected Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors.
Archibong posted a career-high 10 total blocks in the series-opening five-set win on Oct. 1, the first double-digit block effort in the Big 12 this season.
Nembhard, in her first extended action of the year, put down a team-high 24 and 19 kills, respectively, in the series sweep.
Her 24 kills were a single-match high in the conference at the time of her award and it tied for the second-most kills recorded by a K-State freshman.
The honors were the first of their respective careers and the 56th and 57th during the tenure of Fritz.

VS. RANKED OPPONENTS

Texas marks the first ranked opponent K-State will face this season.
In 2019, K-State went 0-4 vs. ranked teams - all ranked in the nation's top five.
K-State last defeated a top-10 opponent at home on Nov. 15, 2003 - upsetting No. 10 Nebraska in four sets.
Against top-five foes, K-State is a combined 2-73 (.027) in its history.
K-State is 7-119 (.056) all-time against teams ranked in the nation's top 10.
The Wildcats last defeated a top-five team in 2011, when they ousted No. 2 Nebraska in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Lincoln.
K-State last defeated a top-10 team on Aug. 27, 2016 when it defeated No. 6 Hawaii in four sets.
Since 2014, K-State is 3-29 (.097) against teams ranked in the AVCA Top 25.
The Cats have never defeated the nation's No. 1 team (0-13).

NEMBHARD BREAKS OUT

Seeing her first extended action at West Virginia, freshman outside hitter Jayden Nembhard racked up 24 kills in K-State's five-set win on Oct. 1.
Her 24-kill output tied for the second-most kills in the match by a Wildcat freshman and was one shy of tying the program's freshman record.
All-American Kylee Zumach set the freshman record with 25 against Eastern Michigan in 2014 and also had 24 against WVU the same season.
Cari Jensen also had 24 against Pepperdine in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in 2000 (Dec. 2).
With 19 more kills on Oct. 2, Nembhard totaled a team-high 43 kills in two five-set wins over the Mountaineers.

DEFENSIVE CATS

As a team, K-State ranks in the top three in the Big 12 in blocks per set (2nd), opponent hitting percentage (3rd) and digs per set (3rd).
K-State registered double-digit blocks in each of its five-set wins at WVU, recording 15.0 and 13.0 team blocks, respectively.
Archibong's 10-block performance on Oct. 1 was the first double-digit block match in the conference as she is tied for the single-match high this year.
The Wildcats have not allowed an opponent to hit over .230 and limited the Mountaineers to a season-low .156 in five sets in their last match.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Abigail Archibong

Aliyah Carter

Jayden Nembhard

Kylee Zumach

Kansas State University Athletics