Oct. 14, 2015 Box Score
THE RUNDOWN
WACO, Texas -- Baylor volleyball dropped its second straight conference match with a 3-1 loss to No. 9 Kansas, 25-21, 13-25, 25-20, 25-17, Wednesday night at the Ferrell Center.
The Bears struggled to string together runs in three of four sets, forcing the team to fight out of a deficit each time. Baylor hit .223 in the match opposed to Kansas' .226, racking up 51 kills in the loss.
Three Bears had double-digit kills: Shelly Fanning with a match-high 14 kills, followed by Andie Malloy with 12, and Katie Staiger with 10. The Jayhawks (18-0, 6-0 Big 12) used a three-block advantage at the net to hand Baylor its second home loss, out blocking the Bears 14.0 to 11.0.
Baylor and Kansas traded points to start the match, but multiple hitting errors and the Kansas block separated the two teams, ultimately giving the Jayhawks a 25-20 first-set win.
BU came back with a vengeance, though. The Bears hit a match-high 18 kills in set two to hand Kansas its worst set loss of the season, winning 25-13.
After the break, sets three and four did not go Baylor's way. BU could not put enough pressure at the service line, allowing Kansas to take the final sets 25-20 and 25-17.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Baylor limited Kansas to 13 points in set two, the worst set loss for the Jayhawks in 2015.
- Andie Malloy recorded a double-double with 12 kills and 12 digs her sixth of the season and the 25th of her career.
- Malloy's double-double was her sixth of the season and the 25th of her career.
- The Bears are now 0-3 against ranked opponents this season.
- Shelly Fanning led all hitters with 14 kills in the four-set loss.
- Amy Rosenbaum led the Bears with 25 assists.
- Jordan Vail added seven kills and four blocks for the Bears.
- Baylor limited Kansas to a .094 hitting effort in the second set, winning 25-13.
STAT OF THE DAY
14 kills -- a match-high hitting effort by Shelly Fanning.
TOP QUOTE
"We missed a lot of serves that first set that kind of cost us, and in the second set we blew them away and let our defense do some good things, had a lot of digs in there, took good swings. In the third set, back-and-forth, we didn't do well from the service side. We're getting better, but this is October, and our identity has got to kick in a little bit more. We're not gonna be excited about the one set we won, we gotta fight and be upset about the three sets that we lost." - Head Coach Ryan McGuyre
WHAT'S NEXT
Baylor (13-6, 1-4 Big 12) hits the road to face West Virginia Saturday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. at WVU Coliseum.
Baylor Volleyball Match Recap
By Cody Soto
Baylor Bear Foundation
The undefeated Kansas Jayhawks proved to be too strong for Baylor volleyball Wednesday night.
The Bears (13-6, 1-4 Big 12) fell in four sets, 25-21, 13-25, 25-20, 25-17, at the Ferrell Center, dropping their second straight conference match at home.
Although the Bears led in kills, digs and assists, the ninth-ranked Jayhawks took the match with the help of AVCA National Player of the Week Ainise Havili and outside hitters Kelsie Payne and Madison Rigdon. Baylor could not match the intensity at the net with an 11.0-5.0 blocking deficit either.
The Bears were also hurt at the service line with 10 errors and only one ace.
"We missed a lot of serves that first set that cost us," Baylor head coach Ryan McGuyre said. "In the third set, back-and-forth, we didn't do well from the service side. We're getting better, but this is October, and our identity has got to kick in a little bit more."
The Bears traded points with Kansas (18-0, 6-0) throughout the first set, only giving up small leads due to service errors and missed opportunities on the outside. Baylor dropped set one, 25-21.
Baylor then put their game plan into high gear, handing Kansas its worst set loss of the season. The Bears looked solid on the outside, hitting .533 while limiting the Jayhawks to .064 in the second frame.
With a match-high 18 kills, a Havili attack error gave Baylor the 25-13 second-set win to tie up the match 1-1 heading into the break.
"In the second set we blew them away and let our defense do some good things, had a lot of digs in there; we took good swings," McGuyre said.
Sets three and four went the same for the Bears, costing them at the service line and attack errors. Baylor was limited to a .069 hitting effort in the final frame, allowing Kansas to run away with a 25-20 and 25-17 wins in the third and fourth sets, respectively.
Although Baylor handed Kansas its most lopsided set loss of 2015, it wasn't enough for McGuyre.
"We're not going to be excited about the one set we won, we've got to fight and be upset about the three sets that we lost," he said.
Baylor will have a chance to redeem itself Saturday as it travels to Morgantown, W.Va. to face a struggling West Virginia team (5-13, 0-5). First serve is set for 3:30 p.m. CDT at WVU Coliseum.
