Senior Day showdown for Kansas against Oklahoma
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas volleyball (15-11, 8-7 Big 12) concludes the regular season against Oklahoma (16-11, 8-7 Big 12) Saturday, Nov. 24 at 1 p.m. for Senior Day at Horejsi Family Athletic Center. Gabby Simpson and Patricia Montero will be honored prior to the first serve.
The Jayhawks look to break their current four-game losing streak when they face the Sooners, who are now in third place with KU and Iowa State after its victory at West Virginia and Kansas’ loss at ISU.
Against the Cyclones, Ashley Smith logged a team-high 14 kills, while Simpson earned her seventh double-double of the season (37 assists/10 digs). The duo of Lacey Angello and Allie Nelson each tallied 10 digs.
Fans can watch the game live on ESPN+, or tune into the audio broadcast on the Jayhawk Radio Network via KUAthletics.com/Radio with Jackson Schneider calling the action.
QUICK HITS
• Kansas enters Saturday’s match with a 15-11 overall record and an 8-7 mark in Big 12 play, dropping its previous four matches.
• Oklahoma enters with a 16-11 record and is third in the Big 12 standings with an 8-7 mark in conference play.
• Saturday’s match will mark the 89th contest between KU and Oklahoma.
• Kansas ranks first in the Big 12 Conference in blocks per set, averaging 2.86 (9th nationally), while also holding down the top mark in the conference and 23rd nationally with 297.5 total blocks.
• Out of 25 matches played, Kansas has logged double-digit blocks in all but eight, which was comprised of a 10-match streak.
• In 104 sets played, Kansas has held its opponents to a .193 hitting percentage, which ranks third in the Big 12.
• The win over Texas Tech on Nov. 3, 2018 earned KU its 15th win of the season, which marks the 10th-consecutive season with at least 15 victories.
LAST TIME vs OKLAHOMA
• In its previous match against Oklahoma in Norman, Okla., KU fell behind two sets to one, but beat the Sooners in a five-set thriller, 3-2. Freshman Rachel Langs tallied a career-night, finishing with a KU record for blocks in a match with 14 block-assists.
SELECTION SHOW
• Kansas awaits its postseason fate until Sunday, Nov. 25 at 7:30 p.m. when the NCAA selection committee announces the 64-team field on ESPNU and ESPN3. The field is comprised of 32 automatic qualifiers with 32 at-large selections.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT
• Senior Gabby Simpson tallied a triple double against K-State (11/14) with 10 kills, 46 assists and 14 digs. Simpson is the first member of the Big 12 this season to accomplish the feat and only the 31st nationally.
• Jada Burse tallied her 800th career kill against K-State (11/14), while Ashley Smith earned her 400th career kill in the first set at Iowa State (11/21).
• Rachel Langs is tied for the top spot in the Big 12 with 1.37 blocks per set and the average ranks 23rd nationally.
• Also appearing on the Big 12’s top-10 list is Hill, who averages 1.17 blocks per set for seventh and is tied for fourth with 118 total blocks.
• Junior outside hitter Burse leads Kansas with 3.76 points per set and 3.45 kills per set, which rank eighth and seventh, respectively, in the Big 12.
• Following a midseason injury to Camryn Ennis, Simpson transitioned to setter and has a team-high 529 assists and 5.34 assists per set.
• Ennis has reached 10 assist-dig double-doubles in her 23 matches played as a Jayhawk, and is second on the team in assists (444/5.01 per set) and third in digs per set (2.20).
• Junior Allie Nelson leads KU in digs per set (3.67) which is good for sixth in the Big 12.
• Freshman Lacey Angello holds down the second-best average with 2.44 digs per set and has started the previous 17 matches.
LAST TIME OUT
• Kansas continued its slide in the Big 12 standings, dropping its fourth-straight match. The Jayhawks traveled to Iowa State on Wednesday, Nov. 21, falling to the Cyclones, 0-3.
-30-
• Against West Virginia Oct. 31, KU tallied 30 points in its third-set victory, the most points in a set this season.
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