🏐 Elnady, Jayhawks Ace Omaha
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Behind a record-breaking eight aces from redshirt freshman Ayah Elnady, the No. 23 Kansas volleyball team defeated the Omaha Mavericks at the Horseji Family Volleyball Arena in Lawrence, Kansas, Wednesday afternoon.
The Jayhawks topped the Mavericks 3-1 (25-16, 25-17, 20-25, 25-16). With the win, the Jayhawks improve to 10-2 on the year, while the Mavericks fall to 5-5.
“I thought we really played well today,” stated head coach Ray Bechard. “It was our third match in three days. Sometimes there is a little physical fatigue from that, but London Davis gave us some good lift today. Ayah Elnady, from the service line, controlled the match. It was a good effort by everyone involved.”
Set One
Omaha started the first set on top after a kill, 1-0. Kansas took the lead soon after with kills from graduate transfer Lauren Dooley and sophomore Caroline Bien. The Jayhawks maintained the lead with Elnady getting back-to-back aces, 7-4. Sophomore London Davis added two more points to the Jayhawks score with two kills of her own, 11-8. Kansas would run away with the lead after back-to-back-to-back aces by Elnady 18-12. Bien had a solid kill to put the Jayhawks ahead 20-14. Kansas would take set one after a kill by Bien, 25-16.
Set Two
Davis kicked off set two with a kill, followed by a kill from Elnady to take an early lead 3-1. The Mavericks tried to close the gap, but Davis was too strong and pushed the ball past the Omaha defense for a Kansas kill, allowing KU to lead 4-2. A block by Bien kept the Jayhawks in the lead 9-6. KU’s defense didn’t stop there as Dooley shut down Omaha’s attempt with a solo block of her own, 14-10. A surprise attack by Turner shook up the Mavericks and advanced Kansas to 18-13. The Jayhawks momentum closed out set two 25-17.
Set Three
Set three started off with a Jayhawk kill by Davis, 1-0. The Maverick’s tied up the set at one, but Davis came back with another kill. Elnady moved Kansas to 3-2, but Omaha blocked an attack attempt by Bien to tie up the set again at three. A solo block by Davis put the Jayhawks back on top 8-7. Omaha took the lead with a double block, but KU was able to tie it up again off a solid kill by Dooley, however the Mavericks regained the lead off a service ace, 18-16. A double block by Langs and Davis put the Jayhawks closer to the lead, however the Mavericks took set three, 25-20.
Set Four
Two kills in the fourth set by Davis gave Kansas an early lead, 2-1. The Jayhawks extended their lead off back-to-back-to-back aces by Elnady, 6-1. The Mavericks added two more points off back-to-back kills, however the Jayhawks extended their lead off a double block by Langs and Turner, 13-6. Dooley and Turner got a double block of their own extending the lead to 16-8. Farris collected an ace of her own, 22-12. The Jayhawks would go on to win set three off a kill from Langs, 25-16.
Notables
- Redshirt freshman Ayah Elnady broke the school record with 8 aces in a four-set match.
- Sophomore London Davis had a career-high 14 kills, surpassing her previous record of 13 that was set at Kansas State during the 2021 season.
- The Jayhawks held Omaha to under .200 hitting percentage in three out of four sets.
- The Jayhawks collected 47 kills and a .252 hitting percentage, while the Mavericks collected 41 kills and a .133 hitting percentage.
“Not a lot of pressure on us right now,” said Bechard. “Texas is a high-level opponent for next week, but we know we can compete at a high level. It is one Big 12 match and we have 16 of them, so we are pretty pleased with our pre-conference record. Now we are equipped and ready to take on the conference part of our schedule.”
Up Next
The Jayhawks will kick off Big 12 Conference play on September 21 against No. 1 Texas in Horejsi Family Volleyball Arena at 8 p.m. CT. The match will also be televised on ESPNU. Following the match up between No. 23 Kansas and No. 1 Texas, KU will travel down the road to Manhattan, Kansas and take on in-state rival Kansas State in Bramlage Coliseum at 4 p.m. CT.
