Completed Event: Women's Soccer at Yale on September 7, 2025 , Win , 4, to, 0
Final
Women's Soccer
4
at Yale
0
No. 14 Kansas Set to Face Vanderbilt, No. 2 Penn State in Season Opener
8/21/2025 2:51:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas volleyball will usher in a new era this weekend as the Jayhawks open the 2025 campaign at the prestigious AVCA First Serve Tournament.
Kansas opens the season against Vanderbilt on Saturday, August 23 at 3 p.m. CT on FS1, as the Commodores make their debut in their inaugural season of volleyball. That match will be played at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska.
The Jayhawks return to action on Monday, August 25, with a change of scenery to the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where KU will face defending national champion and No. 2-ranked Penn State. That match will air on the Big Ten Network at 5:30 p.m. CT.
The 2025 season marks the debut of head coach Matt Ulmer, who was introduced as the program's seventh head coach in January.
"We're excited to take the court for the first time together," Ulmer said. "Opening against high-level competition gives us an immediate opportunity to see where we are and where we can grow. It's a great stage to showcase the identity we want to build as a program."
Ulmer brings a proven track record to Lawrence, having led Oregon to national prominence with a pair of Elite Eight appearances, one Sweet 16 and three times serving as an NCAA Regional host. He also won a national championship as the beach volleyball coach at Long Beach State in 2013. Ulmer now inherits a Kansas program that has reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the past three seasons and finished 2024 ranked No. 12 nationally.
Kansas enters the 2025 season ranked No. 14 in the AVCA Preseason Poll, and KU was picked to finish second in the Big 12 by league coaches, collecting four first-place votes. Individually, Reese Ptacek, Cristin Cline, and Jovana Zelenovic earned preseason All-Big 12 honors, with Ptacek named a unanimous selection to the All-Big 12 First Team.
Kansas will be led by Ptacek, a sophomore middle blocker who was a unanimous preseason All-Big 12 First Team selection after a breakout freshman year. Among other key returners are junior defensive specialist Raegan Burns, who led the Jayhawks with 372 digs (3.4 per set) last season, and pin hitters Grace Nelson and Rhian Swanson.
Newcomers expected to make an immediate impact include transfers Cline (Oregon) at setter, and Audra Wilmes (Washington) at pin hitter, and international freshmen Selena Leban (Slovenia) and Aurora Papac (Croatia). Freshman Logan Bell adds further depth and athleticism to the roster at the pin hitter position.
Fans can follow the action on X (Twitter) @KUVolleyball, track live stats here, or watch the broadcasts on FS1 and the Big Ten Network through ESPN platforms.
The Jayhawks will continue nonconference play the following weekend with a trip to Madison, Wisconsin, facing the perennial powerhouse and No. 8-ranked Wisconsin on August 29 and No.
Kansas opens the season against Vanderbilt on Saturday, August 23 at 3 p.m. CT on FS1, as the Commodores make their debut in their inaugural season of volleyball. That match will be played at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska.
The Jayhawks return to action on Monday, August 25, with a change of scenery to the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where KU will face defending national champion and No. 2-ranked Penn State. That match will air on the Big Ten Network at 5:30 p.m. CT.
The 2025 season marks the debut of head coach Matt Ulmer, who was introduced as the program's seventh head coach in January.
"We're excited to take the court for the first time together," Ulmer said. "Opening against high-level competition gives us an immediate opportunity to see where we are and where we can grow. It's a great stage to showcase the identity we want to build as a program."
Ulmer brings a proven track record to Lawrence, having led Oregon to national prominence with a pair of Elite Eight appearances, one Sweet 16 and three times serving as an NCAA Regional host. He also won a national championship as the beach volleyball coach at Long Beach State in 2013. Ulmer now inherits a Kansas program that has reached the NCAA Tournament in each of the past three seasons and finished 2024 ranked No. 12 nationally.
Kansas enters the 2025 season ranked No. 14 in the AVCA Preseason Poll, and KU was picked to finish second in the Big 12 by league coaches, collecting four first-place votes. Individually, Reese Ptacek, Cristin Cline, and Jovana Zelenovic earned preseason All-Big 12 honors, with Ptacek named a unanimous selection to the All-Big 12 First Team.
Kansas will be led by Ptacek, a sophomore middle blocker who was a unanimous preseason All-Big 12 First Team selection after a breakout freshman year. Among other key returners are junior defensive specialist Raegan Burns, who led the Jayhawks with 372 digs (3.4 per set) last season, and pin hitters Grace Nelson and Rhian Swanson.
Newcomers expected to make an immediate impact include transfers Cline (Oregon) at setter, and Audra Wilmes (Washington) at pin hitter, and international freshmen Selena Leban (Slovenia) and Aurora Papac (Croatia). Freshman Logan Bell adds further depth and athleticism to the roster at the pin hitter position.
Fans can follow the action on X (Twitter) @KUVolleyball, track live stats here, or watch the broadcasts on FS1 and the Big Ten Network through ESPN platforms.
The Jayhawks will continue nonconference play the following weekend with a trip to Madison, Wisconsin, facing the perennial powerhouse and No. 8-ranked Wisconsin on August 29 and No.
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