K-State Wraps Up Regular Season at No. 9 Baylor

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State takes its three-match winning streak on the road, as the Wildcats conclude the 2020-21 regular season with a non-conference tilt at No. 9 Baylor Wednesday at 2 p.m. at Ferrell Center.

K-State (13-7, 10-6 Big 12) is coming off a straight-set victory of Wayne State Sunday before upending No. 24 Creighton last week. The Wildcats seek to end a five-match skid to the Bears (18-5, 13-3 Big 12).

In Sunday's win over Wayne State, freshman Aliyah Carter turned in 22 kills while freshman libero Mackenzie Morris added 22 digs. Carter logged her second straight 20-kill match and sixth of the season while Morris produced her fifth match with 20 or more digs.

During the fall portion of schedule, the Wildcats reached a ranking as high as No. 10 and look to boost their postseason resume ahead of the 48-team tournament field to be announced Sunday, April 4. The entire NCAA Volleyball Championship will be held at CHI Health Center in Omaha, Nebraska, from April 13-24.

Wednesday's match will be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Fans can also listen to Rob Voelker call the match on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) with free, streaming audio available at K-StateSports.com/watch.

MATCH #21
K-STATE (13-7, 10-6 BIG 12) at #9 BAYLOR (18-5, 13-3 BIG 12)
Wednesday, March 31 // 2 p.m. // Ferrell Center // Waco, Texas
Watch: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ // ESPN app
Radio: News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM, 1350 AM) // Rob Voelker
Listen: K-StateSports.com/watch
Live Stats

K-STATE AT A GLANCE

K-State concludes the 2020-21 regular season with a non-conference matchup with No. 6 Baylor at Ferrell Center.
The Wildcats claimed their third straight victory after sweeping Division II Wayne State (Neb.) on Sunday.
In the win, Aliyah Carter logged 22 kills to lead the offense, marking her second straight 20-kill performance.
Her 22 kills were one shy of tying the program's three-set record during the rally-scoring era.
Behind 12 blocks and 61 digs, the Wildcat defense held Wayne State to a .083 hitting percentage - a season low for a K-State opponent.
Mackenzie Morris led the back row with 22 digs Sunday, her fifth match with 20 or more digs.
Morris' 22-dig effort was one away from equaling K-State's three-set digs record in the rally-scoring era.
K-State's 12 blocks were its highest output over the last 16 contests.
Megan Vernon led the way with six blocks while Kadye Fernholz added five.
In the fall, the Wildcats earned a third-place finish in the Big 12 after going 10-6 during league play.
K-State reached a national ranking as high as No. 10 and was ranked for seven straight weeks to end the fall.
The Cats will play one more non-conference matches at No. 6 Baylor on Wednesday with hopes of qualifying for the 48-team NCAA Tournament.
K-State's 10 conference wins were most since the 2008 season (14) while earning its first top-three league finish since 2008.

SCOUTING BAYLOR

Baylor (18-5, 13-3 Big 12) has won seven of its last nine matches after a four-set loss to No. 2 Texas last Friday.
The Bears finished second in the conference standings and swept K-State in both matches in Waco during the fall.
Yossiana Pressley, the Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year, leads BU and the Big 12 with her 4.66 kills per set.
Pressley ranks seventh in the nation in kills per set and is third in total points.
As an offense, Baylor ranks second in the conference in hitting percentage, assists per set, kills per set and blocks per set.
Kara McGhee is in the Big 12's top 10 in both hitting percentage (.311) and blocks per set (1.23).
The Bears have been ranked in the nation's top 10 throughout the entire season and were as high as No. 2 in the fall.

INSIDE THE SERIES

K-State leads the all-time series with Baylor, 29-22, dating back to 1993.
The Bears have won the last five in the series after taking both contests during the fall conference schedule.
K-State is 12-14 on the road in the series, last winning in 2018 in Waco.
The Cats defeated then-No. 24 Baylor on Oct. 20, 2018, marking K-State's last win in the series and last road ranked victory.
Baylor is 8-2 in the last 10 meetings while taking nine of the last 11 overall.
Head coach Suzie Fritz is 22-18 against the Bears in her career.

POSTSEASON HOPES

With a third-place finish in the competitive Big 12, K-State seeks a big into the 2020-21 NCAA Tournament.
The 48-team field, which is reduced from the traditional 64 teams, will include 30 automatic qualifiers and 18 at-large berths.
The field will be announced April 4 and will be played April 13-24 at Chi Health Center in Omaha, Nebraska.
K-State eyes its first postseason bid since the 2016, when the Cats hosted the first two rounds and reached the Round of 32.
Fritz has qualified for 12 NCAA Tournaments in her 20-year career (10-12 record).

VS. RANKED OPPONENTS

K-State's victory over No. 24 Creighton on March 20 marked the first ranked win since the 2018 season.
The Cats are 1-4 this season against ranked opponents, including two losses at then-No. 3 Baylor during the fall.
In 2019, K-State went 0-4 vs. ranked teams - all ranked in the nation's top five.
K-State's victory over the Bluejays snapped a nine-match skid to ranked teams.
The Wildcats defeated No. 24 Baylor in 2018 (3-0).
Since 2014, K-State is 4-32 (.111) against teams ranked in the AVCA Top 25.

GOING THE DISTANCE

In 2020-21, K-State has played 79 of a possible 95 sets, going the full five sets in nine of 19 matches.
The Cats are 6-3 in five-set matches after a five-set loss to Texas State on March 4.
The Wildcats are 4-0 in five-setters on the road and twice came back from 1-2 deficits.
The Cats have won four of their last five five-setters and played the full five sets at least once in all but two of the fall's two-match series.
K-State's six five-set wins are the highest single-season total since the 2014 season (6).
The Wildcats' record for five-set wins in a season is eight (2011).
Since 2017, K-State has played 32 five-set matches, going 15-16.

KILLER CARTER

True freshman Aliyah Carter continues her breakout freshman campaign, notching 22 kills against Wayne State on Sunday.
Her 22-kill outing was the second straight 20-kill match and third of the spring season.
She now has reached the 20-kill mark six times this season.
Her 4.16 kills per set is on pace to shatter K-State's freshman record of 4.00 set by Cari Jensen in 2000.
Carter's 4.53 point per set rate is also on track to become the Cats' new freshman record, as Kylee Zumach's 3.87 points/set in 2014 currently stands as the mark to beat.
Carter's 27 kills against Texas State on March 4 broke her own K-State freshman record, which she set against Texas on October 16 (26).
Carter now owns the top three single-match performances in program history by a freshman.
Carter's 27 kills are tied for third-most in the rally-scoring era in program history.
Carter earned back-to-back Big 12 Rookie of the Week awards (Oct. 37 and Nov. 3) and again earned two start Rookie of the Week Awards, being named on March 17 and March 24.
She was also tabbed Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week on March 24, as she now has five weekly awards this season.
Carter has led K-State in kills in 13 of 20 matches, including four straight from Oct. 22-30.
Carter ranks fourth overall in the Big 12 and second among league freshmen in kills per set.

BY THE NUMBERS

In 13 victories this season, K-State is hitting .248 while limiting opponents to a .163 hitting percentage.
Conversely, the Wildcats hit just .197 in losses while opponents turn in a .268 efficiency.
When holding opponents under a .200 hitting percentage, K-State is 9-1 this season.
K-State is 9-1 this season when holding its opponents below a .200 efficiency this season.
Fritz is 70-0 in her career when limiting teams to a .100 mark of lower, including the .083 percentage turned in by Wayne State on Sunday.
The Cats are 3-0 when hitting .300 or higher, including a season-high .392 efficiency in their four-set win over Creighton.
The Cats are 10-1 when winning the opening set and 3-6 when dropping set one.

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Players Mentioned

Aliyah Carter

Kadye Fernholz

Mackenzie Morris

Megan Vernon

Kylee Zumach

Kansas State University Athletics