#24 Jayhawks Return Home to Host Baylor

Sept. 22, 2005

LAWRENCE, Kan. –

The 24th-ranked Kansas volleyball team will look for its 14th straight win at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center Saturday night when it hosts Baylor at 7 p.m. The Jayhawks (10-2, 2-1 Big 12) are coming off a five-game loss at #23 Texas Wednesday night, while the Bears (9-4, 1-1 Big 12) lost at home to Iowa State in their last outing.

Gametracker, live video streaming and post-match results will be available on Kansas Athletics’ official website, kuathletics.com.

KU PREVIEW
The Jayhawks, 10-2 overall, return nine letterwinners and five starters in 2005. KU started the season 4-0 before falling at BYU, 3-1, and had a six-match win streak snapped Wednesday night with a tough 3-2 loss at #23 Texas.

Senior middle blocker Josi Lima, a three-time All-Big 12 First Team selection, is the top KU returner and reigning Sports Imports/AVCA National and Big 12 Player of the Week. Postseason awards candidates Paula Caten (senior), Jana Correa (junior) and Emily Brown (sophomore) are also in the starting six.

Lima leads the KU hitters with 3.93 kills and adds 2.42 digs and 1.00 blocks per game. Correa, a 6-0 outside hitter, is close behind with 3.72 kills per game on a .294 attack percentage while freshman Savannah Noyes, a 6-3 middle blocker, adds 1.70 kills per game at a .295 clip.

Caten, a 6-3 outside hitter, adds 3.21 kills per game and Brown, a 6-2 right side hitter, chips in 2.84 kills and 2.19 digs per game. Junior libero Jamie Mathewson paces the defense with 3.05 digs per game.

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
The Jayhawks have won 13 straight matches at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center, dating back to a 3-2 loss to Missouri on Oct. 16, 2004. KU has had much success on its home court recently and is 65-31 overall (.677) at Horejsi since its opening on Sept. 1, 1999.

KANSAS BACK IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
The Jayhawks returned to the Top 25 this week after being ranked as high as 21st in the 2004 national poll. KU came in at 24th in Monday’s CSTV/AVCA Top 25 Coaches’ Poll with 154 points. The Jayhawks received their first-ever national ranking (24th) on Sept. 13, 2004, and stayed in the Top 25 for three weeks last season.

BAYLOR PREVIEW
The Bears (9-4, 1-1 Big 12), picked to finish seventh in the league this season, fell to Iowa State, 3-1, at home Wednesday night without two starters — junior middle blocker Desiree Guilliard-Young (knee injury) and senior right-side hitter Kelly Spriggs (grandfather’s funeral). Junior outside hitter Nicole LeBlanc, who averages 3.89 kills and 2.87 digs per game, had a match-high 21 kills and added nine digs in the loss.

Junior outside hitter Stella Odion averages 3.62 kills per game on a team-best .339 attack percentage and sophomore libero Kristen Schramek leads the Bears defensively with 4.02 digs per game.

THE KU/BAYLOR SERIES
The Bears lead the all-time series against the Jayhawks, 13-8. The teams split the series last season, each winning on its respective home courts.

LAST MEETING — KANSAS 3, BAYLOR 0
Josi Lima tallied a season-high 18 kills as Kansas swept Baylor, 30-25, 30-23, 30-26, Nov. 10, 2004, at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center.

In addition to her 18 kills on a .452 attack percentage, Lima had eight digs and five total blocks (including a career-best three solos). Jana Correa added 15 kills (.303 hitting mark) and two blocks of her own.

Three Jayhawks — Ashley Michaels, Emily Brown and Paula Caten — rounded out the balanced offensive attack with nine kills apiece. Andi Rozum dished a match-best 49 assists to go with four kills while Jill Dorsey led the KU defense with nine digs.

BU was led by Kelly Spriggs, who had 11 kills. KU out-hit the Lady Bears .376 to .196 but was outblocked 9.5 to 7.0 in the win.

LIMA KILLS COUNTDOWN — 19 TO GO
Josi Lima will leave KU as one of the most prolific players in the program’s history — regardless of what records she takes with her. A four-year starter and Big 12 standout, Lima ranks second on the all-time list with 1,287 kills and is just 19 away from the career record (1,306) set by Sarah Rome (2000-03). In addition, Lima could finish her career on top of many blocking charts and in the top five for attack percentage, kills per game and digs.

Match Notes in PDF Format
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