Kansas State University Athletics
Thursday, November 6
Manhattan, Kan.
6:30 p.m.
Kansas State University
13-7,6-6Big 12
3
vs
1
Cincinnati
12-9,4-7Big 12
1
2
3
4
F
Cincinnati
22
25
21
13
1
Kansas St.
25
21
25
25
3
K-State’s Team Effort Overpowers Cincinnati Thursday Night
Nov 06, 2025 | Volleyball
MANHATTAN, Kan. – A record-setting 13 service aces and career milestones from seniors Ava LeGrand and Shaylee Myers, along with a breakout performance from freshman Avery Stones, lifted K-State to a 3-1 victory over Cincinnati Thursday night at Morgan Family Arena, 25-22, 21-25, 25-21, 25-13.
K-State (13-7, 6-6 Big 12) dominated the final two sets, allowing just four combined lead changes. The Wildcats hit .222 compared to Cincinnati's .204, registering 58 kills on the night. Defensively, K-State collected 72 digs with four players reaching double figures, while UC (12-9, 4-7 Big 12) held a narrow 8.0-7.0 edge in blocks.
Myers joined an elite group as the 28th player in program history – and 14th in the rally-scoring era –to eclipse 1,000 career points. The senior from Lincoln, Nebraska, entered the match needing 20.5 points to reach the milestone and achieved it late in the third set. She finished with 23.5 points, marking the 15th time in 20 matches this season she has led the team in the category. Myers tallied 21 kills and added 10 digs for her fourth double-double of the year.
LeGrand reached a milestone of her own, breaking the 1,000th career assist mark early in the opening set. The senior from Papillion, Nebraska, totaled 44 assists and 19 digs for her 11th double-double of the season.
In her first collegiate start, Stones turned in a standout performance with 17 kills and nine digs. The true freshman became the first Wildcat to record a 10-kill match in her debut season since Aniya Clinton in 2023.
Five Wildcats contributed to the team's record-setting 13 service aces – the most in a four-set match during the rally-scoring era. Redshirt freshman Emerson Van Lannen led the way with five, followed by LeGrand with four and Symone Sims with two, while Stones and Myers each added one.
Sims, a product of Frisco, Texas, anchored the back row with 21 digs – her ninth match this season with 20 or more. She becomes just the sixth player in K-State history to record nine or more 20-dig matches in a single season and the 12th to do so in a career. Caleigh Ponn added 10 digs for her sixth double-digit performance of the year.
FROM THE CATS
JASON MANSFIELD, K-STATE HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
"I just love the response after the last match that we had. I think that being on the road for five straight matches was tough, and it's so great to be back home and have the crowd behind us, and they definitely showed up tonight. It's about making plays, and we can't take any win for granted in the Big 12, these teams are really good. We have to win matches. They're not going to give it to us. I couldn't be more proud of our effort, specifically defensively.
I mean, for us to have 72 digs – Symone [Sims] with 21, Ava [LeGrand] with 19, both Caleigh [Ponn] and Shaylee [Myers] with ten, that's really where it starts for us. [It was] an unbelievable performance. Thirteen aces is a lot and the run Emerson [Van Lannen] went on in the fourth set was special. I think Avery [Stones] coming in for Aniya [Clinton], has been working really hard in practice, and the best thing she did tonight was just being herself and making the plays that she's capable of making. When Brenna [Schmidt] went down in the first set and Cadence [Lundgren] had to come in, she did a great job, too. I thought Ava ran a great offense. She set lots of different people well, and we were aggressive offensively. [I'm] just really proud of them, and it was definitely a win that feels really good."
On Shaylee Myers' 1000th career point tonight…
"Starting with Shaylee [Myers], she's having a special year, and I'm really proud of her and happy for her, for her career 1000th point to happen in her senior year. She's been waiting for this year and working really hard. I think that 21 kills tonight against a really good defensive team says a lot about her, but she really has carried us a lot this season and hopefully she gets some confidence back. She's one of the best attackers in all of the Big 12."
On Ava LeGrand's 1000th career assist…
"Ava [LeGrand], is our leader, somebody that touches the ball the most for us, runs our offense, but an unbelievable server, defender, blocker, she just does everything for us. She's really running our offense now the way that we need her to, and kind of setting everybody by committee and everybody knows that they need to be ready, to get set from her. Yeah, there's no one more important to our team than Ava."
AVA LEGRAND, SENIOR SETTER
On overall performance thoughts…
"I think there were a lot of changes. There was a major change with Aniya [Clinton] out, but I think all of us can agree that we're so proud of Avery [Stones] and she just had so much confidence that helped us just believe in her. We already did, but it just kind of came together and she did such a good job– I couldn't be prouder of her. My teammates like Shaylee [Myers], she's always gonna get a kill for me. I can trust her in that. I feel like our defense was really good. I'm unsure of the stats, but I feel like we got a lot of digs which kind of made their offense struggle a little bit."
On what a career 1000 assists means to her…
"It's like being a senior, I kind of want to give it all for this program and leave it better than I found it. I mean, that's awesome, but I don't really mind. I think it has a lot to do with other things, and I hope that I'm not really remembered for anything like that, but rather I'm more so remembered helping this program be as great as it can be this year, and the next year, and even better, in the years to follow."
SHAYLEE MYERS, SENIOR OUTSIDE HITTER
On how tonight's performance played out…
"There was a change today, but we all kind of came together, and Avery [Stones] did a really good job, but we're really proud of her and Cadence [Lundgren] for coming in and being ready at all times. I feel like we just kind of went at them from all angles – our defense was good, our offense was good, our serving was good, and it's just really hard for them to keep trying to win when we had a lot of pressure on them. I think we all played really well tonight. Ava [LeGrand] did a really good job running the offense, and therefore she got 1000 assists."
On what a career 1000 points means to her legacy…
"Similar to what Ava [LeGrand] said, it's a really big milestone – but it's not who I am. I play volleyball, but I also hope it reflects my hard work and doing things to make the team better and just pushing each other. I also am very proud of it but definitely couldn't do it at all without everybody on the team."
SET-BY-SET
Set 1 – K-State 25, Cincinnati 22
Set 2 – Cincinnati 25, K-State 21
Set 3 – K-State 25, Cincinnati 21
Set 3 – K-State 25, Cincinnati 13
INSIDE THE BOX
BEYOND THE BOX
UP NEXT
K-State returns to Morgan Family Arena to host No. 20 Colorado (20-3, 10-1 Big 12) – the Big 12 leader in the conference standings – on Saturday at 1 p.m. The match with the Buffaloes can be seen live on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Saturday's contest marks the Wildcats' fifth match against a Top 25 team in a seven-match stretch.
Single-match tickets are available for all K-State home matches through the K-State Athletics ticket office at 1-800-221-CATS and www.kstatesports.com/tickets.
– k-statesports.com –
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on the K-State Volleyball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
K-State (13-7, 6-6 Big 12) dominated the final two sets, allowing just four combined lead changes. The Wildcats hit .222 compared to Cincinnati's .204, registering 58 kills on the night. Defensively, K-State collected 72 digs with four players reaching double figures, while UC (12-9, 4-7 Big 12) held a narrow 8.0-7.0 edge in blocks.
Myers joined an elite group as the 28th player in program history – and 14th in the rally-scoring era –to eclipse 1,000 career points. The senior from Lincoln, Nebraska, entered the match needing 20.5 points to reach the milestone and achieved it late in the third set. She finished with 23.5 points, marking the 15th time in 20 matches this season she has led the team in the category. Myers tallied 21 kills and added 10 digs for her fourth double-double of the year.
LeGrand reached a milestone of her own, breaking the 1,000th career assist mark early in the opening set. The senior from Papillion, Nebraska, totaled 44 assists and 19 digs for her 11th double-double of the season.
In her first collegiate start, Stones turned in a standout performance with 17 kills and nine digs. The true freshman became the first Wildcat to record a 10-kill match in her debut season since Aniya Clinton in 2023.
Five Wildcats contributed to the team's record-setting 13 service aces – the most in a four-set match during the rally-scoring era. Redshirt freshman Emerson Van Lannen led the way with five, followed by LeGrand with four and Symone Sims with two, while Stones and Myers each added one.
Sims, a product of Frisco, Texas, anchored the back row with 21 digs – her ninth match this season with 20 or more. She becomes just the sixth player in K-State history to record nine or more 20-dig matches in a single season and the 12th to do so in a career. Caleigh Ponn added 10 digs for her sixth double-digit performance of the year.
FROM THE CATS
JASON MANSFIELD, K-STATE HEAD COACH
Opening Statement…
"I just love the response after the last match that we had. I think that being on the road for five straight matches was tough, and it's so great to be back home and have the crowd behind us, and they definitely showed up tonight. It's about making plays, and we can't take any win for granted in the Big 12, these teams are really good. We have to win matches. They're not going to give it to us. I couldn't be more proud of our effort, specifically defensively.
I mean, for us to have 72 digs – Symone [Sims] with 21, Ava [LeGrand] with 19, both Caleigh [Ponn] and Shaylee [Myers] with ten, that's really where it starts for us. [It was] an unbelievable performance. Thirteen aces is a lot and the run Emerson [Van Lannen] went on in the fourth set was special. I think Avery [Stones] coming in for Aniya [Clinton], has been working really hard in practice, and the best thing she did tonight was just being herself and making the plays that she's capable of making. When Brenna [Schmidt] went down in the first set and Cadence [Lundgren] had to come in, she did a great job, too. I thought Ava ran a great offense. She set lots of different people well, and we were aggressive offensively. [I'm] just really proud of them, and it was definitely a win that feels really good."
On Shaylee Myers' 1000th career point tonight…
"Starting with Shaylee [Myers], she's having a special year, and I'm really proud of her and happy for her, for her career 1000th point to happen in her senior year. She's been waiting for this year and working really hard. I think that 21 kills tonight against a really good defensive team says a lot about her, but she really has carried us a lot this season and hopefully she gets some confidence back. She's one of the best attackers in all of the Big 12."
On Ava LeGrand's 1000th career assist…
"Ava [LeGrand], is our leader, somebody that touches the ball the most for us, runs our offense, but an unbelievable server, defender, blocker, she just does everything for us. She's really running our offense now the way that we need her to, and kind of setting everybody by committee and everybody knows that they need to be ready, to get set from her. Yeah, there's no one more important to our team than Ava."
AVA LEGRAND, SENIOR SETTER
On overall performance thoughts…
"I think there were a lot of changes. There was a major change with Aniya [Clinton] out, but I think all of us can agree that we're so proud of Avery [Stones] and she just had so much confidence that helped us just believe in her. We already did, but it just kind of came together and she did such a good job– I couldn't be prouder of her. My teammates like Shaylee [Myers], she's always gonna get a kill for me. I can trust her in that. I feel like our defense was really good. I'm unsure of the stats, but I feel like we got a lot of digs which kind of made their offense struggle a little bit."
On what a career 1000 assists means to her…
"It's like being a senior, I kind of want to give it all for this program and leave it better than I found it. I mean, that's awesome, but I don't really mind. I think it has a lot to do with other things, and I hope that I'm not really remembered for anything like that, but rather I'm more so remembered helping this program be as great as it can be this year, and the next year, and even better, in the years to follow."
SHAYLEE MYERS, SENIOR OUTSIDE HITTER
On how tonight's performance played out…
"There was a change today, but we all kind of came together, and Avery [Stones] did a really good job, but we're really proud of her and Cadence [Lundgren] for coming in and being ready at all times. I feel like we just kind of went at them from all angles – our defense was good, our offense was good, our serving was good, and it's just really hard for them to keep trying to win when we had a lot of pressure on them. I think we all played really well tonight. Ava [LeGrand] did a really good job running the offense, and therefore she got 1000 assists."
On what a career 1000 points means to her legacy…
"Similar to what Ava [LeGrand] said, it's a really big milestone – but it's not who I am. I play volleyball, but I also hope it reflects my hard work and doing things to make the team better and just pushing each other. I also am very proud of it but definitely couldn't do it at all without everybody on the team."
SET-BY-SET
Set 1 – K-State 25, Cincinnati 22
- K-State rushed out to a 5-1 lead in the opening set, highlighted by Stones' first collegiate service ace. The two sides were locked up at 17 until K-State capitalized on a 6-2 scoring run to take the set.
- Stones and Myers each put down four kills in the opening set and hit at a .333 clip, while Williams added three.
- As a team, the Wildcats produced a .306 hitting percentage (15 kills, 4 errors, 36 swings), against the Bearcats' .250 (13 kills, 5 errors, 32 attempts).
Set 2 – Cincinnati 25, K-State 21
- In Set 2, the Cats rushed out to an early 8-5 lead after a kill by Jordyn Williams, only to see the Bearcats claw back and level the score at 13. After exchanging blows, Cincinnati took advantage of a 6-0 spurt to take the set 25-21.
- The set saw a total of six tied scores and three lead changes.
- Myers led the Wildcat offense with six kills in the set, followed by Stones with five.
Set 3 – K-State 25, Cincinnati 21
- A 6-1 run by the Bearcats turned an 18-12 score into a 19-18 game. Tied 21-21, K-State closed out the set with a four straight points, that included a pair of aces from LeGrand.
- Myers led all players and recorded eight of K-State's 17 kills in the set, hitting .263 on 19 swings.
- Set 3 featured seven tied scores and two lead changes.
Set 3 – K-State 25, Cincinnati 13
- Tied 6-6, K-State pieced together an 11-2 scoring run midway through the frame to take a 17-8 lead, highlighted by four consecutive service aces from Van Lannen. Stones' 17th kill of the night closed the match.
- Stones led the set with five kills (.400), with Myers recording three.
- The Wildcats defense held Cincinnati to a match-low .097 (9 kills, 6 errors, 31 attempts) with three blocks and 14 digs.
INSIDE THE BOX
- K-State defeated Cincinnati in four sets Thursday night at Morgan Family Arena – 25-22, 21-25, 25-21, 25-13.
- The Cats hit .222 (58 kills, 22 errors, 162 swings) with seven players tallying a kill. UC produced a .204 hitting percentage (47 kills, 18 errors, 142 attempts).
- Two Wildcats recorded double-digit kills led by Myers' 21 while Stones added a career-high 17.
- LeGrand handed out 44 assists to go with 19 digs for her 11th double-double of the year, and Myers had 10 to complete her fourth.
- Sims led the Cats back line with 21 digs – her ninth 20-dig match of the year. Caliegh Ponn added 10.
- Five different players tallied a service ace with a career-five coming from Van Lannen and four by LeGrand.
- UC held a 8.0-7.0 edge in blocks, while K-State held a 72-67 advantage in dig production.
- Sydney Nolan was the only player to reach double figure kills for the Bearcats (16), while three players each added eight.
- Lilly Gillespie led all players with 24 digs followed by Paige Pickering (11).
- The match saw a total of 24 tied scores and 11 lead changes, including a match-high four in Set 1.
BEYOND THE BOX
- K-State leads the all-time series with Cincinnati, 3-1. Thursday's contest marked the Cats first win in the series in Manhattan.
- The Cats' 13 service aces set a program record for total aces in a four-set match in the rally scoring era.
- Myers became the 28th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points, while LeGrand recorded her 1,000th career assist.
- With her 21 kills Thursday night, Myers is 104 from her 1.000th career kill. She would become the 20th player to reach the milestone. She is the eighth player to compile eight or more 20-kill matches in a single season.
- Myers recorded her 17th consecutive match with double figure kills – her 19th overall of the season.
- Sims becomes the sixth player in school history to register nine or more 20-dig matches in a single-season, while she is the 12th to post nine in her career.
- Stones earned her first collegiate start, becoming the fifth true freshman to start in a match this season. Six true freshman have made their collegiate debuts under Mansfield.
UP NEXT
K-State returns to Morgan Family Arena to host No. 20 Colorado (20-3, 10-1 Big 12) – the Big 12 leader in the conference standings – on Saturday at 1 p.m. The match with the Buffaloes can be seen live on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Saturday's contest marks the Wildcats' fifth match against a Top 25 team in a seven-match stretch.
Single-match tickets are available for all K-State home matches through the K-State Athletics ticket office at 1-800-221-CATS and www.kstatesports.com/tickets.
– k-statesports.com –
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on the K-State Volleyball, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
Team Stats
UC
KState
Kills
47
57
Errors
18
22
Attempts
142
162
Hitting %
.204
.216
Points
58.0
77.0
Assists
44
55
Aces
3
13
Blocks
8
7
Game Leaders
Kills
21
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
17
Aces
1
Blocks
2
Kills
6
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
4
Aces
4
Blocks
0
Players Mentioned
OH/OPP
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L/DS
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/ VolleyballMB
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