🏐 Jayhawks Fall at No. 11 Baylor, 3-1

WACO, Texas – No. 11 Baylor was too much for Kansas in Big 12 volleyball play as the Bears defeated the Jayhawks 3-1 (19-25, 26-28, 25-23, 15-25) Thursday evening at the Ferrell Center.

Kansas fell to 11-7 overall and 3-4 in Big 12 play, while Baylor improved to 10-4 and 4-1.

Baylor outhit Kansas .354 to .205 and posted 13 blocks to Kansas’ seven for the match. Super-senior Jenny Mosser and sophomore Caroline Crawford led KU with 11 kills each. Crawford hit an impressive .526 with 11 kills, one error in 19 attacks. Senior Rachel Langs and freshman Caroline Bien each recorded eight kills. Langs paced KU with five total blocks, while Mosser had three. Freshman Camryn Turner had a team-best 24 set assists, while sophomore Elise McGhie had 18. Senior Lacey Angello had a team-high 10 digs, while Bien had eight and Turner seven for the Jayhawks.

The first set was tied at 7-7, when Baylor scored four of the next five points to take an 11-8 lead. KU clawed back and tied the set at 17-17, which included a kill by Bien and an ace by McGhie. Baylor would go on to score the next four points en route to a 25-19 set win. Sophomore Caroline Crawford led KU with four kills and a .667 hitting percentage in the first set, while Bien added two kills.

The second set was a back-and-forth battle with Baylor edging Kansas 28-26. The set had 18 ties and six lead changes with no team leading by more than two points. Langs led KU with four kills for the set, while Davis, Crawford and Mosser each had three. Mosser tied the set at 25-25 with a kill and Langs later had a kill to tie it at 26-26.

Kansas won the third set 25-23. With the set tied at 11-11, Kansas scored four of the next five points which included kills by Bien, junior Gracie Van Driel and Crawford and a combo block from Bien and Crawford. Down the stretch, KU would turn to Crawford, who scored on two straight kills, then Mosser who was part of KU’s final three points with two kills and a block assist with Langs to end the set.

Mosser continued her run with two kills to start the fourth set as the Jayhawks led 3-0. Baylor countered with six straight points and never looked back en route to a 25-15 set win. The Bears hit .520 for the fourth set and built a 20-10 lead. Mosser posted five kills in the set, while sophomore Karli Schmidt had two.

These two teams will conclude their 2021 series Friday, Oct. 15, at 5 p.m., at the Ferrell Center. The match will be televised on ESPNU.