Kansas State University Athletics
Friday, November 20
Waco, TX
5 p.m.
Kansas State University
10-5,10-5Big 12
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Baylor
12-3,12-3Big 12
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Kansas St.
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Baylor
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No. 3 Baylor Claims Top-10 Battle in Four Sets
Nov 20, 2020 | Volleyball
WACO, Texas – No. 10 K-State saw its five-match winning streak come to an end Friday, as the Wildcats dropped a four-set decision to third-ranked Baylor at Ferrell Center, 15-25, 26-24, 25-27, 19-25.
K-State (10-5, 10-5 Big 12) hit a season-low .124 on the night, as the loss locked the Cats into third place in the Big 12 standings. Aliyah Carter logged a match-high 18 kills and Abigail Archibong added a dozen kills to go with five blocks.
"Offensive kill production is what I think it came down to," said head coach Suzie Fritz after the match. "One of the things Baylor does a really nice job of is serve and pass. I thought they were a little bit better in that area than we were tonight, but mostly, it was kill production.
"I think for a pretty high-octane team, we held them to a respectable percentage defensively, but we needed to be able to generate more offense. There's a lot of things that go into kill production, it's not just on the hitters to kill it. I think if we can just get more of an increase tomorrow night, I think that's where we can separate those 27-25 type of games."
The second and third sets alone saw 36 tie scores and 22 lead changes. K-State held Baylor (12-3, 12-3 Big 12) below a .210 team hitting percentage in each of the final three frames, as the Bears finished the match at .212.
BU totaled 17.5 team blocks, with 5.5 coming in a pivotal third set. Kara McGhee paced all players with 12 total blocks (11 assists, 1 solo), with three blocks coming in set three.
With the match tied at a set apiece, K-State fought off two straight set-point opportunities and rallied to earn a set-point chance of its own at 25-24. Out of a timeout, Baylor tallied the set's final three points to take a 2-1 lead.
Set three held 22 tie scores and 15 lead changes.
In the opening set, K-State managed a .067 team efficiency in part to four Baylor blocks. Carter turned in a team-best three kills in set one while middles Archibong and Kadye Fernholz each tossed in a pair.
The Bears offense clicked at a .400 pace, as Yossiana Pressley added six kills on 10 swings and McGhee put down four on five attacks. McGhee added three block assists as BU led the set from start to finish.
The Cats evened the match behind six kills from Carter in the second. K-State withstood 14 tie scores and seven lead changes, hitting .194 and picking up 14 kills in the set. The Wildcat defense suppressed Baylor to a .130 efficiency, courtesy of three team blocks. Archibong picked up four kills and two more blocks in set two.
K-State fought to even the fourth set at 16 before seeing Baylor close the match on a 9-3 spurt. The Wildcat offense hit .070 as BU added five more blocks.
Libero Mackenzie Morris registered a team-best 19 digs. The freshman has led the Cats in the category in all 15 matches this season. Jacque Smith chipped in 11 digs while setter Teana Adams-Kaonohi handed out 38 assists.
Baylor owned a 56-49 edge in total kill production, as three Bears reached double-digit kills. Pressley, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Year, was limited to a .105 hitting percentage, turning in 17 kills on 57 swings (11 errors).
The Wildcats conclude their fall slate on Saturday, with first serve scheduled for 2 p.m. The match will be broadcast live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Fans can also listen to Rob Voelker on the call at K-StateSports.com/watch.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
K-State (10-5, 10-5 Big 12) hit a season-low .124 on the night, as the loss locked the Cats into third place in the Big 12 standings. Aliyah Carter logged a match-high 18 kills and Abigail Archibong added a dozen kills to go with five blocks.
"Offensive kill production is what I think it came down to," said head coach Suzie Fritz after the match. "One of the things Baylor does a really nice job of is serve and pass. I thought they were a little bit better in that area than we were tonight, but mostly, it was kill production.
"I think for a pretty high-octane team, we held them to a respectable percentage defensively, but we needed to be able to generate more offense. There's a lot of things that go into kill production, it's not just on the hitters to kill it. I think if we can just get more of an increase tomorrow night, I think that's where we can separate those 27-25 type of games."
The second and third sets alone saw 36 tie scores and 22 lead changes. K-State held Baylor (12-3, 12-3 Big 12) below a .210 team hitting percentage in each of the final three frames, as the Bears finished the match at .212.
BU totaled 17.5 team blocks, with 5.5 coming in a pivotal third set. Kara McGhee paced all players with 12 total blocks (11 assists, 1 solo), with three blocks coming in set three.
With the match tied at a set apiece, K-State fought off two straight set-point opportunities and rallied to earn a set-point chance of its own at 25-24. Out of a timeout, Baylor tallied the set's final three points to take a 2-1 lead.
Set three held 22 tie scores and 15 lead changes.
In the opening set, K-State managed a .067 team efficiency in part to four Baylor blocks. Carter turned in a team-best three kills in set one while middles Archibong and Kadye Fernholz each tossed in a pair.
The Bears offense clicked at a .400 pace, as Yossiana Pressley added six kills on 10 swings and McGhee put down four on five attacks. McGhee added three block assists as BU led the set from start to finish.
The Cats evened the match behind six kills from Carter in the second. K-State withstood 14 tie scores and seven lead changes, hitting .194 and picking up 14 kills in the set. The Wildcat defense suppressed Baylor to a .130 efficiency, courtesy of three team blocks. Archibong picked up four kills and two more blocks in set two.
K-State fought to even the fourth set at 16 before seeing Baylor close the match on a 9-3 spurt. The Wildcat offense hit .070 as BU added five more blocks.
Libero Mackenzie Morris registered a team-best 19 digs. The freshman has led the Cats in the category in all 15 matches this season. Jacque Smith chipped in 11 digs while setter Teana Adams-Kaonohi handed out 38 assists.
Baylor owned a 56-49 edge in total kill production, as three Bears reached double-digit kills. Pressley, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Year, was limited to a .105 hitting percentage, turning in 17 kills on 57 swings (11 errors).
The Wildcats conclude their fall slate on Saturday, with first serve scheduled for 2 p.m. The match will be broadcast live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Fans can also listen to Rob Voelker on the call at K-StateSports.com/watch.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- K-State hit .124 as a team (49 kills, 30 errors, 153 attacks).
- Baylor turned in a .121 hitting percentage (56 kills, 24 errors, 151 swings).
- K-State .124 efficiency marked a season low.
- Carter led all players with 18 kills.
- Archibong recorded 12 kills and hit a team-best .500 with five blocks.
- Fernholz logged six kills on 13 swings without an error (.462)
- Morris paced the Cats with 19 digs and has led the team in digs in all 15 contests.
- Baylor finished with 17.5 team blocks.
- Three Bears reached double-figure kills, led by Pressley's 17.
- K-State leads the all-time series 29-21.
- The Cats are 12-13 on the road in the series.
- Fritz is 22-17 in her career against BU.
- Baylor has won the last four meetings in the series.
- K-State is 0-3 against ranked teams this season.
- The Wildcats are locked into third place in the Big 12 standings, their first top-three finish since 2008.
- K-State's five-match winning streak was snapped and dropped to 5-2 on the road this season.
Team Stats
KState
Baylor
Kills
49
56
Errors
30
24
Attempts
153
151
Hitting %
.124
.212
Points
59
77.5
Assists
46
52
Aces
2
4
Blocks
8
17.5
Game Leaders
Kills
18
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
5
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
S
/ VolleyballMB/OPP
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