Cats Face Cyclones Sunday on ESPNU

MANHATTAN, Kan. – K-State returns to Bramlage Coliseum Sunday, as the Wildcats host Iowa State at 3:30 p.m. for a nationally televised broadcast on ESPNU.

K-State (9-6, 0-2 Big 12) seeks to snap a four-match skid after dropping a straight-set decision at Texas Tech Wednesday night. In the matchup with the Red Raiders, senior Elena Baka logged her team-leading sixth double-double of the season with 12 kills and 10 digs.

Iowa State (9-6, 1-1 Big 12) is fresh off an upset of 13^th-ranked Baylor Wednesday night, taking down the Bears in four sets at Hilton Coliseum. Eleanor Holthaus led the Cyclones with 20 kills at a .410 pace in the victory while Solei Thomas added 15 while hitting .407.

The sides have split the season series each of the last two seasons. Iowa State owns a 57-43 lead in the all-time series, dating back to 1976, while the Cats are 23-22 at home against ISU.

The match marks the first Wildcat Weekend of the season, as fans can purchase a general-admission ticket for just $3 when they show their used K-State football ticket against Texas Tech. Fans can also purchase a Wildcat 4-Pack for $40 and get four general-admission tickets and four concessions vouchers ($10 each).

In addition to the national television broadcast on ESPNU, fans can listen to Rob Voelker on the call on News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM), online at K-StateSports.com/watch and on the K-State Sports app.

MATCH #16
K-STATE (9-6, 0-2 BIG 12) vs. IOWA STATE (9-6, 1-1 BIG 12)
Sunday, Oct. 2 // 3:30 p.m. // Bramlage Coliseum // Manhattan, Kan.
TV: ESPNU // Sam Gore, Nicole Branagh
Radio: News Radio KMAN (93.3 FM) // Rob Voelker
Listen: K-StateSports.com/watch // 1350KMAN.com
Tickets | Live Stats

K-STATE AT A GLANCE

K-State returns to Bramlage Coliseum for its second home conference tilt, hosting Iowa State Sunday before a national television audience on ESPNU.
Wednesday night, the Wildcats played their first Big 12 road match of the season and fell in straight sets to Texas Tech.
Against the Red Raiders, Elena Baka recorded her team-leading sixth double-double of the season with 12 kills and 10 digs.
Shaylee Myers added 10 kills and Kadye Fernholz tallied eight while hitting a team-high .500.
Texas Tech held a 44-37 edge in total kills and hit .272 to the Wildcats' .144.
Libero Mackenzie Morris led all players with 17 digs.
Against the Jayhawks, Morris registered a match-high 20 digs, pushing her over the 1,000-dig mark for her career.
In just her 63rd career match, Morris became the fastest player in program history in the rally-scoring era to join the 1,000-digs club - breaking the previous mark of 64 matches set by Angie Lastra (2004-07).
K-State starts its conference slate 0-2 for the second straight year and third time over the last five seasons.
The loss at TTU marked the Cats' first straight-set defeat of the season and the fourth straight loss overall, extending their season-long skid.

SCOUTING IOWA STATE

Iowa State (9-6, 1-1 Big 12) is fresh off its upset of No. 13 Baylor Wednesday night, as the Cyclones took down the Bears in four sets at Hilton Coliseum.
In the match, ISU got 20 kills from Eleanor Holthaus at a .410 clip and Solei Thomas added 15 while hitting .407.
The Cyclones finished the match with a .315 team efficiency and held a 66-53 edge in total kills.
Holthaus ranks 10th in the Big 12 with 3.15 kills per set.
Defensively, Alexis Engelbrecht's 1.19 blocks a set are fifth-most in the conference and Brooke Stonestreet ranks fifth with 3.94 digs per set.
Iowa State has won four of its last five matches, suffering a four-set loss at TCU to begin league action last Saturday.
ISU has played just two three-set matches this season (0-2) and have played 10 consecutive matches of at least four sets.

INSIDE THE SERIES

K-State trails the all-time series with Iowa State 57-43, going back to 1976.
The teams have split the season series each of the last two years, as K-State snapped a 12-year road skid in Ames a season ago, picking up its first win at Hilton Coliseum since 2007.
The Cyclones have claimed nine of the last 11 meetings overall, including eight straight from 2016-20.
The Wildcats are 23-22 at home against ISU while head coach Suzie Fritz is 19-23 in her 22-year career vs. Iowa State.
The teams last played in Manhattan during the 2020 season, splitting two matches to open the campaign.

MORRIS' MILESTONE

With her 20 digs Saturday against Kansas, K-State junior libero Mackenzie Morris joined the 1,000-digs club.
She became the seventh Wildcat to play her entire career in the rally-scoring era to reach career dig No. 1,000.
Additionally, Morris is the fastest player in program history (rally-scoring era) to reach the milestone, doing so in just 63 matches.
Earlier this season, Morris set a career high with 25 digs against UCF and produced three straight 20-dig outings from Sept. 16-24 - the longest such stretch of her career.
The Dallas native now owns 16 career matches with at least 20 digs, which is tied for third-most in program history.
At 4.09 digs per set, she is currently one of just two players in the rally-scoring era to average over 4.00 digs per set (Angie Lastra, 4.37).
Morris is one of just four active players in the Big 12 with at least 1,000 career digs (third among active Big 12 athletes).

HOME COOKIN'

K-State began its home schedule 4-0 for the first time since 2018.
Under Fritz, K-State owns a home non-conference regular-season record of 80-9 (.899) and went unbeaten at home vs. non-con opponents for the 16th time in 22 seasons.
In five home matches this season, the Wildcats are hitting .248 while limiting opponents to a .135 team efficiency.
Myers is averaging 4.38 kills per set and hitting .457 at home while Bolding is hitting .409 with 2.21 kills per set.
The Cats have served up 38 aces at home, with Baka accounting for 10 of them and eight coming from both Bolding and Hinkle.
K-State is 35-13 (.729) in matches played at Bramlage Coliseum and head coach Suzie Fritz has a career home record of 200-91 over her 22-year career.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

K-State has won the opening set in 11 of 15 outings to begin the campaign, going 8-3 in those matches.
The Wildcats are unbeaten (8-0) when hitting at a higher hitting percentage and are 8-1 when producing more kills than their opponents.
Additionally, the Cats have won all eight matches in which they have limited their opponents to a hitting efficiency under .200.
With six straight-set victories this season, K-State has already doubled its total from last season (3).
The Wildcats' 3-0 over Kansas City marked the 200th sweep under Fritz.
Fritz collected her 200th career home win against Missouri on Sept. 7 and is 13 away from her 400th career win at the helm of the Wildcats.

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Players Mentioned

Elena Baka

Kadye Fernholz

Mackenzie Morris

Shaylee Myers

Kansas State University Athletics