MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – The Kansas Jayhawks topped the West Virginia Mountaineers at WVU Coliseum on Wednesday evening in four sets (23-25, 25-23, 25-21, 26-24) to earn their third-straight win.
The Jayhawks moved to 15-5 (5-3 Big 12) with the win, while West Virginia dropped to 7-13 (0-7 Big 12).
Sophomore Caroline Bien led the Jayhawks offensively, hitting .310 with 17 kills. Super-senior Anezka Szabo added 10 kills, while hitting .227.
“Caroline would probably tell you this was her best match offensively of the year,” head coach Ray Bechard said. “In the big moments, 42 swings and only four errors. She was swinging at a high efficiency.”
On the defensive end, freshman Brynn Kirsch had 18 digs and graduate transfer Lauren Dooley tallied 11 total blocks for Kansas.
“It was a tough place to play,” said Bechard. “When we needed to be competitive in the moment, we were. We’ll look back on this win and it will really benefit us on having the best Big 12 finish we can.”
Set One
- Szabo had the first point of the match with a kill through the West Virginia defense, as Kansas started off the match with a 3-0 run.
- WVU tied up the set at three with a kill.
- Junior Kennedy Farris had the first ace for the Jayhawks.
- The Mountaineers took control of the set, and had their biggest lead of set one at 20-14.
- KU was able to come back within one-point at 23-22.
- Kansas dropped set one 25-23.
- The Jayhawks hit .258 with 13 kills compared to WVU’s .257 and 15 kills.
- There were five tied scores and three lead changes.
- Redshirt freshman Ayah Elnady, Dooley and Szabo led with three kills apiece.
Set Two
- The Mountaineers began set two with a 3-2 lead and eventually led 9-5.
- Kansas came back within one, 10-9, after a net violation by WVU.
- Bien tied up the set 11-11 with her sixth kill of the night, and KU took the lead for the first time 12-11 following a block solo by Szabo.
- The Jayhawks went on an 8-0 run, to grab an 18-11 lead.
- West Virginia attempted a comeback with a 6-0 run, but a service error by the Mountaineers helped Kansas close out set two 25-23.
- The Jayhawks hit .125 with WVU hitting .061.
- KU had 12 kills while West Virginia had 11.
- Bien contributed seven kills to the Jayhawks total in the second set alone.
- Six tied scores and one lead change occurred.
Set Three
- A kill by Bien put Kansas on the board, trailing 2-1.
- Elnady tallied her fifth kill of the evening, advancing Kansas to a 5-4 lead.
- WVU went on a short 3-0 run, before an attack error brought the ball back to Kansas.
- The Mountaineers were able to come within one point, 18-17, but a service error pushed Kansas to 19-17.
- The Jayhawks finished set three 25-21 with a service ace by Kirsch.
- KU hit .195 and held WVU to .139.
- Elnady had four kills and Szabo collected three kills.
- As a team, Kansas tallied 14 kills with West Virginia only earning 11 for the second set in a row.
Set Four
- An attack error by the Mountaineers put Kansas on the board first 1-0.
- West Virginia extended its lead after an attack error by Dooley, but the call was reversed following a Kansas challenge to make it 12-9.
- A kill by super-senior Rachel Langs and Bien allowed KU to be within one, 16-15, and forced a timeout by West Virginia.
- Later in the set, an ace by Kennedy Farris tied up the set at 22. Kansas then shut down the set 26-24 to earn the hard-fought win over West Virginia.
- KU finished set four hitting .375, its best percentage of the match.
- The Jayhawks only hit one attack error during the final set.
Up Next
Kansas will take on the TCU Horned Frogs in Fort Worth, Texas on Wednesday, Oct. 26 at 6 p.m. CT in Schollmaier Arena. The match will be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
