Kansas State University Athletics
Friday, September 2
Orlando, Fla.
3:30 p.m.
Kansas State University
5-0,0-0Big 12
3
vs
0
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North Florida
1-3,0-0ASUN
1
2
3
F
Kansas St.
30
25
25
3
North Florida
28
22
15
0
Wildcats Take Down Ospreys Behind Baka’s Double-Double
Sep 02, 2022 | Volleyball
ORLANDO, Fla. – Elena Baka's 14-kill, 14-dig double-double and four service aces helped K-State to a straight-set victory over North Florida Friday on the second day of the UCF Challenge, at The Venue at Additions Financial Arena, 30-28, 25-22, 25-15.
Baka has registered multiple aces in all five matches this season, as K-State (5-0) served up a season-high 12 aces in the victory. Baka produced her second double-double of the season with the senior outside hitter hitting .281.
The Wildcats trailed by as many as four points in the first set and fought off five set-point opportunities from North Florida (1-3) before claiming their longest set victory of the year. K-State erased a five-point deficit in set two on its way to its third sweep of the season and its first 5-0 start since 2013.
UNF racked up 20 of its 39 kills in the first set, hitting .341. However, the Cats' defense limited the Ospreys to a combined 19 kills and a .095 team hitting efficiency in sets two and three.
Baka's four aces upped her Big 12-leading total to 14, while Mackenzie Morris added a season-high three and both Loren Hinkle and Molly Ramsey served up a pair. Hinkle dished out 30 assists while Morris registered 11 digs.
K-State's 12 aces came with just three service errors while North Florida finished with three aces against eight service errors. The 12 aces are tied for the fourth-most during a four-set match during the rally-scoring era and the Cats' highest total since 2007.
Aliyah Carter was behind Baka with nine kills and nine digs. Kadye Fernholz and Haley Warner each ended with six kills and Sydney Bolding added five. Bolding led the Wildcats with four block assists, helping her team to seven team blocks.
Mahalia White was the only Osprey in double-figure kills with 10 at a .138 clip. Setter Jenna Zimmermann added 22 assists and 14 digs for her double-double.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Set One
North Florida picked up eight kills on its first 11 swings in jumping out to an early 10-6 lead, forcing a K-State timeout. Zimmerman was responsible for four kills on four attempts, as the setter finished the first set with four kills, 14 assists and nine digs.
Out of the timeout, the Cats responded by scoring six of the next nine to trim the UNF lead to a point, 13-12, as the stretch was capped by Baka's second ace of the set. Twice K-State inched within one point before a 7-4 UNF run handed the Ospreys their first set-point opportunity at 24-20.
The Wildcats fended off four straight set points before tying the score at 24, later claiming their first lead at 26-25. A tandem block from Bolding and Warner completed the comeback and lifted K-State to a 30-28 opening-set win on its fifth set-point try.
Despite UNF owning a 20-14 edge in kills and hitting .341 to the Cats' .152, five blocks and five service aces helped K-State claim its longest set victory of the season.
Baka led the offense with four kills and added two aces. The senior has tallied multiple aces in all five matches this season.
Set Two
A 7-1 K-State run midway through the second set handed the Cats their first lead at 17-15, with the run featuring three kills from Carter. Carter logged four of her nine kills in the set. K-State trailed by as many as five in the set at 12-7.
The Wildcats led the rest of the frame, withstanding a late four-point spurt that brought UNF within one at 23-22. A kill by Warner and an ace from Baka clinched the final two points and a two-set lead.
K-State's defense forced the Ospreys into seven errors against eight kills, limiting them to a .026 hitting percentage in the set behind 19 digs.
Set Three
Baka helped close out the match by recording five kills on 11 swings without an error in the final set (.455). She added five digs and an ace, as the Cats tallied five aces and 17 digs in the third.
After falling behind 6-3, K-State used a 13-4 run to open a 16-10 advantage, putting together a scoring run of four behind Carter's serve in addition to three straight points on the serves of both Morris and Hinkle. K-State pushed its winning streak to five matches by scoring six of the final eight points for a 25-15 set victory.
FROM THE HEAD COACH
Head coach Suzie Fritz
On the difference in the match…
"In the end our serving I thought was the difference. We kept them in and we were getting on it, and it was required, frankly. Really gritty, tenacious, high-energy defensive team that's going to have a great year in North Florida. We had to up our defensive standards a little bit. It was chaotic a little bit, the match was chaotic but once we got settled in things got a little bit better.
On Elena Baka's performance…
"She was pretty important and she also saw 60 percent of the balls in serve-receive, so they were going to make her do a lot, which she did. She did a lot for us. She hit .280, which is exceptionally good for the left sides. I like where Loren Hinkle is at with our left-side hitters right now. I think that's a good place to start from an offensive perspective. We are still trying to search and get a little bit more balance in our offense, but I think that's going to be a work in progress."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
UP NEXT
K-State finishes the UCF Challenge Saturday against host UCF, with first serve set for 6 p.m. CT. The match can be seen on ESPN+ and fans can listen to Rob Voelker on the call online at K-StateSports.com/watch.
Baka has registered multiple aces in all five matches this season, as K-State (5-0) served up a season-high 12 aces in the victory. Baka produced her second double-double of the season with the senior outside hitter hitting .281.
The Wildcats trailed by as many as four points in the first set and fought off five set-point opportunities from North Florida (1-3) before claiming their longest set victory of the year. K-State erased a five-point deficit in set two on its way to its third sweep of the season and its first 5-0 start since 2013.
UNF racked up 20 of its 39 kills in the first set, hitting .341. However, the Cats' defense limited the Ospreys to a combined 19 kills and a .095 team hitting efficiency in sets two and three.
Baka's four aces upped her Big 12-leading total to 14, while Mackenzie Morris added a season-high three and both Loren Hinkle and Molly Ramsey served up a pair. Hinkle dished out 30 assists while Morris registered 11 digs.
K-State's 12 aces came with just three service errors while North Florida finished with three aces against eight service errors. The 12 aces are tied for the fourth-most during a four-set match during the rally-scoring era and the Cats' highest total since 2007.
Aliyah Carter was behind Baka with nine kills and nine digs. Kadye Fernholz and Haley Warner each ended with six kills and Sydney Bolding added five. Bolding led the Wildcats with four block assists, helping her team to seven team blocks.
Mahalia White was the only Osprey in double-figure kills with 10 at a .138 clip. Setter Jenna Zimmermann added 22 assists and 14 digs for her double-double.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Set One
North Florida picked up eight kills on its first 11 swings in jumping out to an early 10-6 lead, forcing a K-State timeout. Zimmerman was responsible for four kills on four attempts, as the setter finished the first set with four kills, 14 assists and nine digs.
Out of the timeout, the Cats responded by scoring six of the next nine to trim the UNF lead to a point, 13-12, as the stretch was capped by Baka's second ace of the set. Twice K-State inched within one point before a 7-4 UNF run handed the Ospreys their first set-point opportunity at 24-20.
The Wildcats fended off four straight set points before tying the score at 24, later claiming their first lead at 26-25. A tandem block from Bolding and Warner completed the comeback and lifted K-State to a 30-28 opening-set win on its fifth set-point try.
Despite UNF owning a 20-14 edge in kills and hitting .341 to the Cats' .152, five blocks and five service aces helped K-State claim its longest set victory of the season.
Baka led the offense with four kills and added two aces. The senior has tallied multiple aces in all five matches this season.
Set Two
A 7-1 K-State run midway through the second set handed the Cats their first lead at 17-15, with the run featuring three kills from Carter. Carter logged four of her nine kills in the set. K-State trailed by as many as five in the set at 12-7.
The Wildcats led the rest of the frame, withstanding a late four-point spurt that brought UNF within one at 23-22. A kill by Warner and an ace from Baka clinched the final two points and a two-set lead.
K-State's defense forced the Ospreys into seven errors against eight kills, limiting them to a .026 hitting percentage in the set behind 19 digs.
Set Three
Baka helped close out the match by recording five kills on 11 swings without an error in the final set (.455). She added five digs and an ace, as the Cats tallied five aces and 17 digs in the third.
After falling behind 6-3, K-State used a 13-4 run to open a 16-10 advantage, putting together a scoring run of four behind Carter's serve in addition to three straight points on the serves of both Morris and Hinkle. K-State pushed its winning streak to five matches by scoring six of the final eight points for a 25-15 set victory.
FROM THE HEAD COACH
Head coach Suzie Fritz
On the difference in the match…
"In the end our serving I thought was the difference. We kept them in and we were getting on it, and it was required, frankly. Really gritty, tenacious, high-energy defensive team that's going to have a great year in North Florida. We had to up our defensive standards a little bit. It was chaotic a little bit, the match was chaotic but once we got settled in things got a little bit better.
On Elena Baka's performance…
"She was pretty important and she also saw 60 percent of the balls in serve-receive, so they were going to make her do a lot, which she did. She did a lot for us. She hit .280, which is exceptionally good for the left sides. I like where Loren Hinkle is at with our left-side hitters right now. I think that's a good place to start from an offensive perspective. We are still trying to search and get a little bit more balance in our offense, but I think that's going to be a work in progress."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- K-State hit .162 as a team (41 kills, 19 errors, 136 attacks).
- North Florida turned in a .186 hitting percentage (39 kills, 17 errors, 118 swings).
- The hitting efficiency marked the first time the Wildcats hit below .200.
- K-State tossed up a season-high 12 service aces and have had 10 or more aces in back-to-back matches.
- Baka led the Cats with 14 kills, 14 digs and four aces.
- It was Baka's second double-double of the season.
- Baka has registered multiple service aces in all five matches this season and currently leads the Big 12 with 14 aces.
- Morris tallied a season-best three aces while Hinkle and Ramsey each added two.
- Morris finished with 11 digs and has eclipsed double digits in all five matches this season.
- K-State totaled seven blocks, with Bolding producing a team-high four block assists.
- The Cats held UNF to a .095 hitting percentage in sets two and three after the Ospreys registered 20 kills at a .341 pace in the first set.
- UNF was led by White's 10 kills, as she was the only Osprey in double figures.
- Zimmermann handed out 22 assists with 14 digs for her double-double.
- North Florida had three aces against eight service errors.
- K-State leads the all-time series with North Florida 2-0, as this was the first meeting between the teams since 2017.
- K-State starts the season 5-0 for the first time since 2013 (started 7-0).
- It is just the fourth time under Fritz the Cats have won their first five matches in season (since 2001).
- The Wildcats are 4-0 all-time against teams from the Atlantic Sun Conference.
- The Cats' 12 aces tied for fourth-most in a three-set match in the rally-scoring era and most since 2007.
UP NEXT
K-State finishes the UCF Challenge Saturday against host UCF, with first serve set for 6 p.m. CT. The match can be seen on ESPN+ and fans can listen to Rob Voelker on the call online at K-StateSports.com/watch.
Team Stats
KState
UNF
Kills
41
39
Errors
19
17
Attempts
136
118
Hitting %
.162
.186
Points
60
47
Assists
34
32
Aces
12
3
Blocks
7
5
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
14
Aces
4
Blocks
3
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
0
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
DS/L
/ Volleyball
DS/L
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DS/L
/ Volleyball
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