No. 10 Kansas Returns Home to Face Iowa State on Saturday
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PROMOTION: Selfie Day
No. 10 Kansas (16-0, 4-0 Big 12) will look to continue its unprecedented winning streak while playing host to Iowa State (10-5, 3-1) on Saturday at 4 p.m., televised on Time Warner Cable SportsChannel. KU enters the weekend with the program’s highest AVCA Coaches Poll ranking (No. 10), longest winning streak (W16), and a high-octane offense that leads the nation in kills and ranks second in hitting percentage.
HIGHEST RANKING
• Kansas continued its historic progression in the AVCA Coaches Poll this week with its first top-10 ranking. KU moved up two spots to No. 10 in the latest poll released on Monday. For the third consecutive week, it is the highest ranking in program history for KU.
• The Jayhawks have been ranked in the top-25 for five consecutive weeks and have at least received votes in all seven of the AVCA’s weekly polls this season.
• Kansas was ranked for a program-record nine consecutive weeks during the 2012 season, finishing No. 25.
SERIES HISTORY: KU-Iowa State
Overall Series: Iowa State leads, 47-38-1
Streak: W1
In Lawrence: KU leads, 19-15-1
• Iowa State leads the all-time series with Kansas, 47-38-1. In matches played in Lawrence, Kansas leads Iowa State, 19-15-1.
• The Jayhawks won the last meeting with Iowa State in Lawrence to snap a four-match losing streak against the Cyclones. Kansas is 3-7 in the last 10 matches against Iowa State.
• Kansas and Iowa State are long-time rivals, having met every year since the series began in 1975.
• The Cyclones are led by 11th-year head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch. Johnson-Lynch is former Nebraska student-athlete with assistant coaching experience at Wisconsin before taking the reigns at Iowa State in 2004.
PACKED HOME CROWDS
• Fans are lining up around the corner to witness KU’s unprecedented season. The Jayhawks’ Horejsi Family Athletics Center (1,300 capacity) has packed in 1,500 fans or more in the last three home matches against Missouri State (1,508), Kansas State (1,565), and West Virginia (1,555).
• KU’s night or weekend matches hold an above-capacity average of 1,470 fans.
UP NEXT
• Saturday’s match begins a month-long run of facing Iowa State, Baylor, Oklahoma, and No. 2 Texas twice over the next eight matches. Kansas visits Baylor on Wednesday, Oct. 17 (7 p.m.).
UNDEFEATED
• KU’s current 16-match winning streak is the best start to a season in program history.
• Wednesday’s win over Texas Tech set the record for longest overall winning streak in program history (W16), passing a 15-match winning streak in 1991.
• The Jayhawks are one of three remaining undefeated teams at the NCAA Division I level, and have the potential to be the last undefeated team by the end of the weekend, as the two other undefeated teams — Arizona State and USC — face each other on Sunday.
• With a win over Gonzaga on Friday, Sept. 18, the Jayhawks set the record for the best start in program history at 11-0, passing 2001’s mark of 10-0.
UNDEFEATED NCAA DIVISION I TEAMS
Kansas (16-0)
Arizona State (15-0)
USC (16-0)
#UNPRECEDENTED ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Highest ranking in the AVCA Coaches Poll (No. 10).
• Best start in program history (16-0).
• Longest overall winning streak in program history (W16).
• NCAA’s leading offense in kills and assists.
• NCAA’s individual leader in assists (Ainise Havili).
• Led by KU’s all-time wins leader, head coach Ray Bechard (311 wins at KU).
• Cassie Wait became the third-fastest Jayhawk to reach 1,000 career digs.
• KU has the potential to make a fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Championship for the first time in program history. Senior Tiana Dockery could become the first Jayhawk in program history to play in the NCAAs four times.
SET DOMINANCE
• During KU’s 16-match winning streak, the Jayhawks hold a Big 12-leading 48-4 (.923) set record.
• Kansas has swept 12-of-16 opponents, including three teams receiving votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll on the date of the match (Duke, Wyoming, Marquette).
• The Jayhawks have yet to play a five-set match this season.
KU’s BIG 12 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
• Madison Rigdon – Offensive (10/5): Recorded a career-best .733 (11-0-15) hitting percentage against West Virginia.
• Ainise Havili – Offensive (9/22): Guided KU to a .396 team hitting percentage with 12.7 assists per set in wins over South Dakota State, Gonzaga and Missouri State. Recorded 51 assists against Gonzaga.
• Kelsie Payne – Offensive (9/7): Combined for 37 kills and a .464 hitting percentage in three 3-set wins over Western Illinois, Duke, and UMKC. Posted 13 kills on 26 errorless swings against UMKC.
HIGH-OCTANE OFFENSE
• Kansas has made its way to an undefeated record behind themost productive offense in the nation. The Jayhawks lead the nation in kills (15.5) and assists (14.5), while ranking second in hitting percentage (.322).
• The Jayhawks are one of just two NCAA Division I teams that rank in the top-5 in both kills and hitting percentage (USC; 3rd kills, 4th hitting percentage).
• Sophomore setter Ainise Havili leads the nation in assists per set (12.6).
• Kansas leads the Big 12 in attack percentage, kills, assists, aces, and opponent attack percentage.
• KU has recorded more kills and a higher hitting percentage than its opponent in every match this season.
• Three Jayhawks rank top-10 in hitting percentage among Big 12 student-athletes — Kelsie Payne (3rd), Janae Hall (5th), and Tayler Soucie (8th).
• Kansas has recorded 50+ kills in a three-set match six times this season, including Wednesday’s match at Texas Tech (50).
• KU has recorded 19 or more kills in a set seven times this season, including 19 kills in the first set during Wednesday’s match at Texas Tech.
FIRST-CLASS SERVE/RECEIVE
• The first step to a high-octane offensive is a solid foundation of passing and serving. The Jayhawks are on the way to an unprecedented season with impressive numbers both categories.
• Kansas leads the Big 12 in aces per set (1.6).
• KU has recorded five or more aces in a match nine times this season, including two double figure efforts — at Arkansas (10) and against Western Illinois (12).
• On the defensive side, Jayhawks have committed just 23 reception errors, while forcing their opponent to commit 84 reception errors.
• KU’s defense ranks eighth in the nation in opponent hitting percentage (.140) and has held opponents to a sub-.200 hitting percentage in all but one match this season.
• Junior libero Cassie Wait features a .992 reception percentage — just two reception errors on 236 attempts.
WAIT CLIMBING KU’S CAREER DIGS LIST
• With 16 digs at Texas Tech on Wednesday, junior libero Cassie Wait moved into eighth-place on KU’s career digs list with 1,050 digs, passing Emily Brown (2004-07; 1,037) and Cyndee Kanabel (1990-93; 1,045).
• Wait ranks third in the Big 12 in digs per set this season (5.0).
• She features 20+ digs in four matches this season, including 23 digs in just three sets against UMKC (9/5).
• On Sept. 23, Wait became the 11th Jayhawk to reach 1,000 career digs. She is the third-fastest Jayhawk to reach the century mark (77 matches; 282 sets) with a career-high 27 digs against K-State (9/23). She passed the 1,000 career digs threshold with nine digs in the third set against the Wildcats. The Garnder, Kansas, native reached the prestigious mark having been KU’s primary libero for just two seasons.
• The only other Jayhawks to reach 1,000 digs quicker were Melissa Manda (2007-10) and all-time digs leader Brianne Riley (2010-13).
HAVILI SETTING THE TONE
• Sophomore setter Ainise Havili is at the heart of KU’s NCAA-leading team offensive numbers.
• Havili’s steady hands lead all NCAA Division I players in assists per set (12.6), while guiding a KU offense to lead the nation in kills (15.5) and rank second in hitting percentage (.322).
• Maybe even more impressive is the balance that Havili provides to KU’s offense. Havili sets an offense that has three players who rank in the Big 12’s kills per set top-10; Kansas is the only team to have two players in the top-10, much less three.
• Havili also ranks second in the Big 12 in aces per set (0.4) while boasting 40 kills on a .354 attack percentage.
• Havili has reached at least 40 assists in nine of the last 11 matches, including a season-high 54 assists against K-State (9/23).
• The Fort Worth, Texas, native posted 46 assists against Marquette (9/12), setting her career high for a three-set match.
• Havili has five double-doubles on the season — at Arkansas (48 assists, 14 digs), against UMKC (44a, 14d), against Northern Colorado (43a, 10d), against Gonzaga (51a, 11d), and against K-State (54a, 13d).
• She earned AVCA All-America honorable Mention Honors last season and entered 2015 as a Preseason All-Big 12 selection.
DYNAMIC TRIO – PAYNE, DOCKERY, RIGDON
• Kansas is the only team in the Big 12 with multiple student-athletes who rank in the top 10 in kills per set in the conference.
• Sophomore right-side hitter Kelsie Payne (2nd), senior outside hitter Tiana Dockery (6th), and sophomore outside hitter Madison Rigdon (8th) all rank Big 12’s top-10 in kills per set.
• Payne ranks second in the Big 12 with 4.0 kills per set on the third-best attack percentage in the league (.416). The Austin, Texas, native recently set a career high in kills with 20 against K-State (9/23). Payne has double-figure kills in all but two match this season.
• Dockery ranks sixth in the Big 12 with 3.4 kills per set. The Houston-area native recorded her first double-double of the season with 11 kills and 10 digs against K-State (9/23). Dockery earned MVP honors at the Jayhawk Classic.
• Rigdon ranks third on the team in both kills (3.2 kps) and digs (2.4 dps). The six-rotation player earned MVP honors at Pistol Pete’s Showdown (Sept 11-12) with 3.7 kills and 2.7 digs per set during the event. She was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week after recording a career-high .733 hitting percentage against West Virginia (10/3). The Pflugerville, Texas, native totals four double-doubles this season. She recorded KU’s first kill-dig double-double of the season against Northern Colorado (9/11) with 12 kills and 15 digs. Rigdon has reached double-figure kills in eight of the last nine matches.
NON-CONFERENCE PERFECTION
• KU finished non-conference regular season play undefeated for the third time under head coach Ray Bechard.
• The other two Kansas teams under Bechard to complete the non-conference regular season undefeated was in 2004 (9-0) and 2000 (9-0).
• Kansas holds a 169-29 (.854) non-conference regular season record under Coach Bechard, including a 60-8 (.882) mark since 2011.
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