Jayhawks Sweep #16 BYU
Sept. 7, 2006
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
Four Jayhawks recorded 11 or more kills as the University of Kansas upset 16th-ranked BYU, 3-0, Thursday night in the opening match of the Jayhawk Classic. KU (7-1) handed the Cougars their first loss of the season, 30-26, 30-24 and 30-23, in front of a lively crowd of 917 at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center.
“I think from start to finish, we saw one of the best efforts we’ve had at Horejsi,” KU head coach Ray Bechard said after the win. “The hitting efficiency [.437] was pretty unbelievable. We had a thorough scouting report and I thought we followed it. The Jayhawks were really good tonight and I’m really proud of them.”
“They [BYU] were really good at their place last year and we were really good tonight,” Bechard added. “I thought our crowd got involved and helped us. They were undefeated, a ranked team, a team that just got off a big win against [#4] Stanford. It’s just one match so we can’t get too excited, but it’s a big step forward.”
Junior Emily Brown paced the Jayhawk offense with 20 kills on a .371 hitting efficiency for a match-best 22.5 points. Senior Jana Correa added 14 kills on a .407 attack percentage and led the defense with 10 digs for her third double-double of the season. Freshman Brittany Williams (.474) and sophomore Savannah Noyes (.625) were unstoppable at the middle blocker position, adding 12 and 11 kills, respectively.
Freshman Katie Martincich ran the offense with 57 assists, had eight digs, and set a new career best with five kills on six attempts (.833). Fellow rookie Melissa Grieb recorded eight digs and senior Dani Wittman led KU behind the serving line with two aces.
BYU (6-1) was led by Erica Lott’s 13 kills and Chelsea Goodman’s 10 digs. Setter Amy Schlauder dished 23 assisted but did not return to the match in Game Three due to an injury.
After a 19-all tie in Game One, KU pulled away by three (23-20) on a spark from Brown, who totaled nine kills in the opening stanza. The Cougars hit at a .421 clip, but were outdone by the Jayhawks, who managed a .541 hitting efficiency (23k/3e/37a) in the first game.
KU jumped ahead early in Game Two, reeling off six straight points to take a 15-9 advantage. The Jayhawks led by as many as eight and held BYU to a match-low .115 attack percentage in the game. Without their starting setter, the Cougars could not connect offensively and totaled just 11 kills to KU’s 22 in Game Three.
BYU and Arkansas (6-0) will face off Friday at 3 p.m. at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center. The Jayhawks and Lady Razorbacks will wrap up the invitational Saturday at 1 p.m.
-KU-
