CINCINNATI, Ohio – No. 15 Kansas Volleyball is set to take on the Cincinnati Bearcats on Wednesday inside Fifth Third Arena to kick off the last week of regular season play.
“We are excited to compete against another new Big 12 member school,” said Kansas Head Coach Ray Bechard. “Coach Alvey and her staff have done a great job and we look forward to the challenge.”
Kansas (21-5, 12-4 Big 12), comes into the last week of the regular season after defeating then-No. 13 BYU in Provo. Kansas has won three of their last four road games and they hold a 6-4 record on the road this season.
Graduate Reagan Cooper was named both the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week as well as the AVCA/TARAFLEX Division I National Player of the week for her massive role in both of the Jayhawks’ ranked-wins last week. Cooper tied for the lead among league players in kills per set (6.00) and ranked second in points per set (6.43) while finishing fourth in hitting percentage (.463) during the week.
Cincinnati (12-14, 5-11 Big 12) posts a 5-8 record at Fifth Third Arena this year, and the Bearcats come into Wednesday losing nine of their last 12. The Bearcats have some big wins this season, though, particularly in conference play as they have defeated West Virginia, Texas Tech, and most recently, Oklahoma.
Wednesday’s match will mark the first time the Bearcats and the Jayhawks will meet on the volleyball court, as Cincinnati is a part of the newest group of schools that were brought into the Big 12 conference this year.
Heading into the final week of the regular season, Kansas sits in second place of the Big 12 conference, and Cincinnati is in 10th place in the standings. Kansas still leads the Big 12 in kills (13.95), assists (12.90), and digs (15.56). The Kansas offense is led by junior setter Camryn Turner, who averages 10.58 assists per set to lead the conference. The Kansas defense is led by freshman libero Raegan Burns, who checks in at No. 10 on the Big 12 digs per set list with her 3.52 average.
Cooper has claimed a place on three different Big 12 leaderboards for the second week in a row, ranking eighth in hitting percentage (.334), eighth in kills per set (3.65) and tenth in points per set with 3.94.
First serve for Wednesday’s match is set for 12:00 p.m. CT, and the game will be streamed on Big 12 Now ESPN+. Fans are encouraged to follow along on Kansas Volleyball’s social media platforms for more in-match updates.
