Kansas rebounds at West Virginia

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Kansas volleyball team snapped a three-game skid with a four-set victory over West Virginia, 25-22, 21-25, 30-28, 25-13, Wednesday night inside the WVU Coliseum.
 
The Jayhawks (14-7, 7-3 Big 12) returned to their defensive roots holding the Mountaineers (10-13, 2-8 Big 12) to a .229 hitting percentage while recording 12.0 blocks at the net.
 
The 12.0 stuffs the Jayhawks recorded marked the 15th time this season KU posted a double-digit blocking effort, with the last coming at Kansas State (Oct. 17).
 
Junior outside hitters Jada Burse (21) and Ashley Smith (17) led both teams with double-digit kill performances, while junior libero Allie Nelson recorded a match high 23 digs.
 
NOTES

  • Kansas won the first set against WVU, 25-22, snapping an eight-set winless streak  – its last set victory came by way of a 25-23 margin in the second at Kansas State (Oct. 17).
  • The Jayhawks’ 30-28 third-set victory marks the highest score for KU in a set since Aug. 27, 2010, when Kansas earned a first-set victory over Lipscomb, 32-30.
  • With the win, KU snapped a three-match winless streak and has now won 15 of the 16 matches played against the Mountaineers, including a perfect 8-0 mark in Morgantown.
  • For the 15th time this season, Kansas recorded double-figures in blocks, finishing the night with 12.0.

 
QUOTES
Head coach Ray Bechard on the team’s performance…
“That third set was obviously key. You have to go into extra points and we made some very aggressive plays both offensively and defensively. That carried over into the fourth set. Our set distribution was heavy to Jada (Burse) and Ashley (Smith) but Gabby (Simpson) was a weapon tonight too.”
 
Bechard on taking this momentum forward…
“The feeling of getting closer to the team we want to be. Defensively our blocking showed itself again. That was why we were successful earlier in the year. To hit over .300 and our primary pass – our littles were key tonight and helped us set up our offensive front.”
 
UP NEXT
The Kansas volleyball team returns to the friendly confines of Horejsi Family Athletics Center to host Texas Tech for Salute to Service night Saturday, Nov. 3 at 6:30 p.m.
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