Kansas State University Athletics
Saturday, September 26
Manhattan, KS
6:30 P.M.
Kansas State University
1-1,1-1Big 12
3
vs
1
Iowa State
1-1,1-1Big 12
1
2
3
4
F
Iowa St.
16
23
25
23
1
Kansas St.
25
25
14
25
3
Wildcats Take Down Iowa State in Four Sets
Sep 26, 2020 | Volleyball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – Brynn Carlson and Aliyah Carter each put down 15 kills to propel K-State past Iowa State in four sets Saturday night at Bramlage Coliseum, 25-16, 25-23, 14-25, 25-23.
K-State (1-1, 1-1 Big 12) out-hit the Cyclones (1-1, 1-1 Big 12) in each of the first two sets, including a match-best .419 team efficiency in the opening set. The Wildcats ended an eight-match losing skid to Iowa State and earned a split in the season-opening series.
"The discussion after the match was that a small adjustment in a few different areas would be a very big deal," head coach Suzie Fritz said. "That was essentially the message last night. I thought our serving was significantly better [tonight]. I thought we were pretty conservative last night; therefore, we're defending in-system offense a lot more. Tonight, I think our serving was far more effective and, frankly, in more often.
"I think it was the cumulative effect of a lot of small details."
Carter, a freshman, reached double-digit kills for the second straight night. Saturday, the 5-foot-9 outside hitter produced at a .222 clip and added four blocks, including a tandem block with fellow freshman Kadye Fernholz for the match's final point. Carter's recorded 14 kills Friday night, but at a .125 hitting percentage.
"Yesterday was first-time jitters, I was a little nervous, I'm not going to lie," said Carter. "Today, I knew what to do and that I just needed to play my game, and everything would be fine."
"I thought she was really good tonight," said Fritz of Carter. "I think the whole challenge for a young player, and not just Carter, is going to be consistency. It's not what they can do one night but what they can do every day and what they can do from match to match."
The Cats' offense clicked early in the first set, as they used an early five-point scoring run behind the serve of senior setter Shelby Martin to grab a lead in which they would not relinquish. Later in the set, K-State tallied eight of the final nine points to take the set, 25-16. The offense did not commit a single attacking error, putting down 13 kills on 31 swings, with Carlson and Carter each picking up four kills.
K-State weathered a 7-1 Cyclone run early in the second game, responding with a 7-2 run of its own to take a 15-14 lead. The teams would tie the score 10 separate times before a Carter kill followed by another tandem block between her and Fernholz handed the Cats a two-set edge. Fernholz led the team with five total blocks (1 solo, 4 assists).
Iowa State strung together nine consecutive points to close out Set 3, outscoring the Cats 14-4 after the score was 11-10. K-State was forced into as many errors as it had kills (10).
"The end of Game 3 I thought we were being a little impatient, trying to force some things that maybe weren't there," Fritz said. "Iowa State, just strategically, was serving a lot of short balls at us and it got us, a little, out of offensive rhythm. It took us too long to make an adjustment."
Carlson and Carter again led the Wildcat offense in the finishing set, tallying six and five kills, respectively. Carlson hit .333 in the frame while Carter's 15th kill of the night leveled the score at 23, helping the Cats end the match on a three-point run.
"When it mattered and when it got late, even last night, in all honesty, I feel like the grit, the determination, the focus is staying where we need it to be," added Fritz. "It's not always going our way and the production isn't necessarily where we need it to be, but I think the will is there. And that feels pretty good."
Freshman libero Mackenzie Morris led the Wildcat defense in digs for the second straight night, racking up 13 to lead a trio in double digits. Dru Kuck and Jacque Smith both chipped in 11 digs with Kuck adding a pair of aces.
"She's fearless," Fritz said of Morris. "She's this tiny little thing and she's just fearless. Frankly, we've been so impressed with our defensive core: Jacque Smith, Loren Hinkle, Dru Kuck, Mack Morris. Those four, the effort, that grittiness that I think we are feeling from our team is really essentially starting with those guys."
Martin handed out 41 assists in addition to her five kills and seven digs. Holly Bonde led the Wildcats in hitting efficiency, as the redshirt sophomore recorded nine kills with one error on 20 swings (.400).
ISU's Brooke Andersen and Annie Hatch led the Cyclones with a dozen kills apiece. Setter Jenna Brandt produced a double-double with her 43 assists and 12 digs.
Iowa State held a 58-53 edge in total kills while the Cats had a .234 hitting percentage to ISU's .228. Each team served four aces and had nine total team blocks.
The Wildcats will head to Morgantown, West Virginia for a nationally televised contest with the Mountaineers on Thursday at 6 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast live on ESPNU and will stream on the ESPN app. Rob Voelker will have the call on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with free, live audio available at K-StateSports.com/watch.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
K-State (1-1, 1-1 Big 12) out-hit the Cyclones (1-1, 1-1 Big 12) in each of the first two sets, including a match-best .419 team efficiency in the opening set. The Wildcats ended an eight-match losing skid to Iowa State and earned a split in the season-opening series.
"The discussion after the match was that a small adjustment in a few different areas would be a very big deal," head coach Suzie Fritz said. "That was essentially the message last night. I thought our serving was significantly better [tonight]. I thought we were pretty conservative last night; therefore, we're defending in-system offense a lot more. Tonight, I think our serving was far more effective and, frankly, in more often.
"I think it was the cumulative effect of a lot of small details."
Carter, a freshman, reached double-digit kills for the second straight night. Saturday, the 5-foot-9 outside hitter produced at a .222 clip and added four blocks, including a tandem block with fellow freshman Kadye Fernholz for the match's final point. Carter's recorded 14 kills Friday night, but at a .125 hitting percentage.
"Yesterday was first-time jitters, I was a little nervous, I'm not going to lie," said Carter. "Today, I knew what to do and that I just needed to play my game, and everything would be fine."
"I thought she was really good tonight," said Fritz of Carter. "I think the whole challenge for a young player, and not just Carter, is going to be consistency. It's not what they can do one night but what they can do every day and what they can do from match to match."
The Cats' offense clicked early in the first set, as they used an early five-point scoring run behind the serve of senior setter Shelby Martin to grab a lead in which they would not relinquish. Later in the set, K-State tallied eight of the final nine points to take the set, 25-16. The offense did not commit a single attacking error, putting down 13 kills on 31 swings, with Carlson and Carter each picking up four kills.
K-State weathered a 7-1 Cyclone run early in the second game, responding with a 7-2 run of its own to take a 15-14 lead. The teams would tie the score 10 separate times before a Carter kill followed by another tandem block between her and Fernholz handed the Cats a two-set edge. Fernholz led the team with five total blocks (1 solo, 4 assists).
Iowa State strung together nine consecutive points to close out Set 3, outscoring the Cats 14-4 after the score was 11-10. K-State was forced into as many errors as it had kills (10).
"The end of Game 3 I thought we were being a little impatient, trying to force some things that maybe weren't there," Fritz said. "Iowa State, just strategically, was serving a lot of short balls at us and it got us, a little, out of offensive rhythm. It took us too long to make an adjustment."
Carlson and Carter again led the Wildcat offense in the finishing set, tallying six and five kills, respectively. Carlson hit .333 in the frame while Carter's 15th kill of the night leveled the score at 23, helping the Cats end the match on a three-point run.
"When it mattered and when it got late, even last night, in all honesty, I feel like the grit, the determination, the focus is staying where we need it to be," added Fritz. "It's not always going our way and the production isn't necessarily where we need it to be, but I think the will is there. And that feels pretty good."
Freshman libero Mackenzie Morris led the Wildcat defense in digs for the second straight night, racking up 13 to lead a trio in double digits. Dru Kuck and Jacque Smith both chipped in 11 digs with Kuck adding a pair of aces.
"She's fearless," Fritz said of Morris. "She's this tiny little thing and she's just fearless. Frankly, we've been so impressed with our defensive core: Jacque Smith, Loren Hinkle, Dru Kuck, Mack Morris. Those four, the effort, that grittiness that I think we are feeling from our team is really essentially starting with those guys."
Martin handed out 41 assists in addition to her five kills and seven digs. Holly Bonde led the Wildcats in hitting efficiency, as the redshirt sophomore recorded nine kills with one error on 20 swings (.400).
ISU's Brooke Andersen and Annie Hatch led the Cyclones with a dozen kills apiece. Setter Jenna Brandt produced a double-double with her 43 assists and 12 digs.
Iowa State held a 58-53 edge in total kills while the Cats had a .234 hitting percentage to ISU's .228. Each team served four aces and had nine total team blocks.
The Wildcats will head to Morgantown, West Virginia for a nationally televised contest with the Mountaineers on Thursday at 6 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast live on ESPNU and will stream on the ESPN app. Rob Voelker will have the call on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with free, live audio available at K-StateSports.com/watch.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- K-State hit .234 as a team (6538 kills, 20 errors, 141 attacks).
- Iowa State turned in a .228 hitting percentage (58 kills, 24 errors, 149 swings).
- Carlson and Carter each tallied 15 kills to lead K-State.
- K-State did not commit an attacking error in the opening set, hitting .419 (13 kills, 31 attacks).
- Fernholz led the Cats with five total blocks while Abigail Archibong and Carter each added four.
- Bonde had a team-best .400 hitting efficiency (9 kills, 1 errors, 20 swings).
- Iowa State leads the all-time series, 56-42.
- The Cats are 23-22 at home in the series.
- Fritz is 18-21 in her career against ISU.
- The Wildcats snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Cyclones, dating back to 2016.
Team Stats
IowaSt
KState
Kills
58
53
Errors
24
20
Attempts
149
141
Hitting %
.228
.234
Points
71
65.5
Assists
54
50
Aces
4
4
Blocks
9
8.5
Game Leaders
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
5
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Players Mentioned
MB/OPP
/ VolleyballOPP/OH
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ Volleyball
DS/L
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