#24 KU Downed By #23 Texas In Thriller, 3-2
Sept. 21, 2005
AUSTIN, Texas –
Despite coming back from an 0-2 deficit to force a deciding game five, the 24th-ranked University of Kansas volleyball team had its six-match win streak snapped Wednesday night with a 26-30, 24-30, 30-27, 30-27, 13-15 loss at #23 Texas in the Gregory Gym. With the loss, the Jayhawks moved to 10-2 overall and 2-1 in Big 12 Conference play while the Longhorns improved to 7-2 and 2-1 in league play.<?xml:namespace prefix=”o” ns=”urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office”?>
Senior Paula Caten tied a career best with 21 kills on a .375 hitting percentage to lead the Jayhawks and added 10 digs in the effort. Sophomore Emily Brown set a new career high with 19 kills while junior Jana Correa also had 19 kills and 11 digs.
Reigning Sports Imports/AVCA National and Big 12 Player of the Week Josi Lima totaled 13 kills and added seven digs while junior Jamie Mathewson set a new career best with 18 digs to lead the KU defense.
KU managed just 6.0 blocks to Texas’ solid 17.5 stuffs on the night, but outdug the Longhorns 65-60 and totaled 84 kills to UT’s 77.
The Jayhawks started strong in game one, taking the first five points and rolling to a 12-7 lead. Texas took the lead for the first time at the 17-16 mark and kept a 26-22 advantage after four straight KU hitting errors. The `Horns held on to win game one, outhitting the Jayhawks .265 to .178 and outblocking them 5.0 to 2.0.
The teams exchanged leads in game two and tied it at 20-all. UT rattled off three unanswered points, forcing a KU timeout at the 23-20 mark. The Jayhawks had 19 kills in the second stanza and improved their hitting efficiency to .237, but had 10 errors that proved costly. UT had just two errors in 32 attempts for a .406 attack percentage and added 7.5 blocks to take game two and a 2-0 advantage in the match.
UT used its first timeout of the third game after KU took an 11-8 lead. The `Horns used their second break when the Jayhawks led 18-13. UT managed a 6-1 run and the Jayhawks took their first break of the game, leading 24-20. Brown ended the game with a kill, 30-27, as KU blasted a .455 hitting efficiency to win game three.
Game four was just as competitive, coming to a 27-all tie behind strong defense and long rallies. KU pulled ahead, 29-27 on two straight Texas hitting errors and Caten ended the game on a kill, forcing a deciding game five.
The `Horns jumped to a 7-4 lead on three unanswered kills in game five, forcing a Jayhawk timeout. Despite a 5-2 run by the Jayhawks, UT came out of its timeout and ended the match on a kill by Jen Christian, 15-13.
To listen to head coach Ray Bechard’s postgame message, call 785-864-7023.
KU will next be in action at 7 p.m. Saturday when it hosts Baylor (9-3, 1-0 Big 12) at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center.
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