Thursday, October 14
Waco, Texas
6 PM
Baylor
vs
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Kansas
No. 11 VB Hosts Kansas for Homecoming
10/13/2021 5:14:00 PM | Volleyball
Bears host the Jayhawks for back-to-back matches after a bye weekend.
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Coming off a COVID-affected 2020-21 volleyball season when Baylor and Texas were the only Big 12 teams selected for the NCAA Tournament, a much-stronger league is positioned to get as many as seven teams in this year.
The 11th-ranked Bears (9-4, 3-1) will jump back into conference play after a weekend off, hosting a Kansas team (11-6, 3-3) that is 15th in the latest RPI rankings and took top-ranked Texas to five sets. Part of this week's Homecoming festivities, the Baylor-Kansas matchups are scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday and 5 p.m. Friday at the Ferrell Center.
"Kansas is a great program. They've been in the Final Four, too, so they know what it takes," Baylor coach Ryan McGuyre said of the Jayhawks, who upset top-seeded USC to make the Final Four in 2015.. "They're good at a lot of positions. They're running their slides well, and both their outside hitters are good ball-control kids and leapers with heavy arms. This will be a team maybe like Florida, where they're active in the middle. They've got some middles that can dice you up really good."
The strength of the league is shown in the latest NCAA.com bracket prediction, which has Baylor and Texas as host sites and Kansas, Iowa State, Texas Tech and West Virginia also in the 64-team field. At 52nd in the RPI, even Kansas State is on the bubble.
"The Big 12 is going to be competitive for all the teams, all these matches. I don't think you're seeing too many sweeps," McGuyre said. "A lot more battles expected, which is great. That's when you find out who are."
Freshman libero/defensive specialist Lauren Briseno said she knew going into the Big 12, "just to jump in and get ready to compete."
"I think it's super exciting," she said, "because it's just going to make us better. Every match you play, just not taking it for granted, getting to show others what Baylor volleyball is about and just playing one way."
Since slipping up against Texas Tech, dropping the last three sets in a 3-2 loss, the Bears have lost just one set. They bounced back with a 3-1 victory over the Red Raiders the next day and then swept North Texas, 3-0, on the road before a rare weekend off.
"That was definitely much-needed," fifth-year senior setter Hannah Sedwick said of the conference bye week. "I feel like it's always good to have a bye week. You get to have more practices and really work on your team, not necessarily preparing for the next team yet, just getting into little things and making your team better."
With senior All-American outside hitter Yossiana Pressley sitting out last Wednesday's match at North Texas to recover and rest, grad transfer Avery Skinner from Kentucky continued her recent dominant play on the outside. She had 18 kills in the 3-0 sweep of the Mean Green and has averaged 5.6 kills per set in the last three matches.
"Just the ability for her to take over, it was really fun," McGuyre said.
After a slow start in the transition to a new program, Skinner has moved up to sixth in the Big 12 with 3.62 kills per set, with Pressley at a league-best 4.39 average.
Sedwick, who is fourth in the Big 12 with 9.88 sets per set, said it's just a matter of "feeding the hot hand."
"Whoever's on can have a night," Sedwick said, "and just making sure on being intentional about repeating what it is working. It was Avery that night, which was big for her. It's awesome."
Senior Shanel Bramschreiber, the reigning Big 12 Libero of the Year, will see a familiar face on the other side of the net. Rachel Langs, a 6-3 senior middle blocker, was her teammate at Class 5A Lovejoy High School.
"I'm super excited to see her on the court," Bramschreiber said. "The other middle (Caroline Crawford) actually reminds us a lot of (former Baylor All-American Shelly Stafford. They have a lot of threats, so they're just strong all around. I think everyone in the Big 12 is improving. You can never take your eye off anyone."
Thursday's match will be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with "Voice of Bears" John Morris and former Baylor All-American Katie Staiger Smith calling the action. Friday's 5 p.m. match will be broadcast by ESPNU.
WACO, Texas – No. 11 Baylor volleyball hosts Kansas for back-to-back matches on Thursday and Friday at the Ferrell Center as part of BU's homecoming festivities.
Baylor (9-4, 3-1) is coming off a bye weekend after defeating North Texas on Wednesday, Oct. 6. The Bears will return to the court to face the Jayhawks (11-6, 3-3) to resume Big 12 play at home.
The Bears lead the all-time series with KU, 16-8, in matches played in Waco. However, Kansas leads the overall series by one, 27-26. Baylor won the last match with a 3-0 sweep in Kansas after falling to the Jayhawks in five sets the day before.
KU comes into the weekend after falling to Texas twice last week, dropping a 3-0 match in night one and battling to a five-set loss in night two. The Jayhawks moved up three spots in the RPI rankings after pushing the Longhorns to the limit, now sitting at No. 15. Baylor currently ranks No. 7 in the RPI through two weeks of rankings.
Baylor continues to be led by Yossiana Pressley in kills and attacks, though Avery Skinner has had a hot hand for the Bears in the last three matches. She hit a combined .350 against Texas Tech and North Texas, with 67 kills overall. Hannah Sedwick leads the team in assists with 484, while Kara McGhee has the most blocks for the Bears with 55. Meanwhile, Kansas is led by Jenny Mosser in kills with 195 and Elise McGhie in assists with 433. Rachel Langs leads the Jayhawks with 71 total blocks on the year.
BEAR BITES
Thursday's match will be at 6 p.m. on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ with John Morris and BU volleyball alumna Katie Staiger Smith on the call. Friday's contest will be televised on ESPNU with a 5 p.m. start time. There will also be a beach towel giveaway for patrons while supplies last.
For both matches, live stats can be found at BaylorStats.com. A full recap as well as final stats can be found on BaylorBears.com after the conclusion of the matches.
To stay up to date throughout the season on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
-BaylorBears.com-
Baylor Bear Insider
Coming off a COVID-affected 2020-21 volleyball season when Baylor and Texas were the only Big 12 teams selected for the NCAA Tournament, a much-stronger league is positioned to get as many as seven teams in this year.
The 11th-ranked Bears (9-4, 3-1) will jump back into conference play after a weekend off, hosting a Kansas team (11-6, 3-3) that is 15th in the latest RPI rankings and took top-ranked Texas to five sets. Part of this week's Homecoming festivities, the Baylor-Kansas matchups are scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday and 5 p.m. Friday at the Ferrell Center.
"Kansas is a great program. They've been in the Final Four, too, so they know what it takes," Baylor coach Ryan McGuyre said of the Jayhawks, who upset top-seeded USC to make the Final Four in 2015.. "They're good at a lot of positions. They're running their slides well, and both their outside hitters are good ball-control kids and leapers with heavy arms. This will be a team maybe like Florida, where they're active in the middle. They've got some middles that can dice you up really good."
The strength of the league is shown in the latest NCAA.com bracket prediction, which has Baylor and Texas as host sites and Kansas, Iowa State, Texas Tech and West Virginia also in the 64-team field. At 52nd in the RPI, even Kansas State is on the bubble.
"The Big 12 is going to be competitive for all the teams, all these matches. I don't think you're seeing too many sweeps," McGuyre said. "A lot more battles expected, which is great. That's when you find out who are."
Freshman libero/defensive specialist Lauren Briseno said she knew going into the Big 12, "just to jump in and get ready to compete."
"I think it's super exciting," she said, "because it's just going to make us better. Every match you play, just not taking it for granted, getting to show others what Baylor volleyball is about and just playing one way."
Since slipping up against Texas Tech, dropping the last three sets in a 3-2 loss, the Bears have lost just one set. They bounced back with a 3-1 victory over the Red Raiders the next day and then swept North Texas, 3-0, on the road before a rare weekend off.
"That was definitely much-needed," fifth-year senior setter Hannah Sedwick said of the conference bye week. "I feel like it's always good to have a bye week. You get to have more practices and really work on your team, not necessarily preparing for the next team yet, just getting into little things and making your team better."
With senior All-American outside hitter Yossiana Pressley sitting out last Wednesday's match at North Texas to recover and rest, grad transfer Avery Skinner from Kentucky continued her recent dominant play on the outside. She had 18 kills in the 3-0 sweep of the Mean Green and has averaged 5.6 kills per set in the last three matches.
"Just the ability for her to take over, it was really fun," McGuyre said.
After a slow start in the transition to a new program, Skinner has moved up to sixth in the Big 12 with 3.62 kills per set, with Pressley at a league-best 4.39 average.
Sedwick, who is fourth in the Big 12 with 9.88 sets per set, said it's just a matter of "feeding the hot hand."
"Whoever's on can have a night," Sedwick said, "and just making sure on being intentional about repeating what it is working. It was Avery that night, which was big for her. It's awesome."
Senior Shanel Bramschreiber, the reigning Big 12 Libero of the Year, will see a familiar face on the other side of the net. Rachel Langs, a 6-3 senior middle blocker, was her teammate at Class 5A Lovejoy High School.
"I'm super excited to see her on the court," Bramschreiber said. "The other middle (Caroline Crawford) actually reminds us a lot of (former Baylor All-American Shelly Stafford. They have a lot of threats, so they're just strong all around. I think everyone in the Big 12 is improving. You can never take your eye off anyone."
Thursday's match will be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with "Voice of Bears" John Morris and former Baylor All-American Katie Staiger Smith calling the action. Friday's 5 p.m. match will be broadcast by ESPNU.
WACO, Texas – No. 11 Baylor volleyball hosts Kansas for back-to-back matches on Thursday and Friday at the Ferrell Center as part of BU's homecoming festivities.
Baylor (9-4, 3-1) is coming off a bye weekend after defeating North Texas on Wednesday, Oct. 6. The Bears will return to the court to face the Jayhawks (11-6, 3-3) to resume Big 12 play at home.
The Bears lead the all-time series with KU, 16-8, in matches played in Waco. However, Kansas leads the overall series by one, 27-26. Baylor won the last match with a 3-0 sweep in Kansas after falling to the Jayhawks in five sets the day before.
KU comes into the weekend after falling to Texas twice last week, dropping a 3-0 match in night one and battling to a five-set loss in night two. The Jayhawks moved up three spots in the RPI rankings after pushing the Longhorns to the limit, now sitting at No. 15. Baylor currently ranks No. 7 in the RPI through two weeks of rankings.
Baylor continues to be led by Yossiana Pressley in kills and attacks, though Avery Skinner has had a hot hand for the Bears in the last three matches. She hit a combined .350 against Texas Tech and North Texas, with 67 kills overall. Hannah Sedwick leads the team in assists with 484, while Kara McGhee has the most blocks for the Bears with 55. Meanwhile, Kansas is led by Jenny Mosser in kills with 195 and Elise McGhie in assists with 433. Rachel Langs leads the Jayhawks with 71 total blocks on the year.
BEAR BITES
- Baylor is 69-31 in Big 12 play under Ryan McGuyre and 195-269 overall.
- BU is seventh in the RPI and ranks No. 11 in the AVCA Coaches Poll.
- Avery Skinner is only nine kills away from her 1,000th in her career across Kentucky and Baylor.
- Shanel Bramschreiber and KU's Rachel Langs were high school teammates at Lovejoy in Lucas, Texas.
Thursday's match will be at 6 p.m. on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ with John Morris and BU volleyball alumna Katie Staiger Smith on the call. Friday's contest will be televised on ESPNU with a 5 p.m. start time. There will also be a beach towel giveaway for patrons while supplies last.
For both matches, live stats can be found at BaylorStats.com. A full recap as well as final stats can be found on BaylorBears.com after the conclusion of the matches.
To stay up to date throughout the season on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
-BaylorBears.com-
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