Wednesday, September 13
Waco, Texas
7PM
Baylor
vs
Washington State
No. 18 VB Hosts No. 11 Washington State on Wednesday
9/12/2023 6:21:00 PM | Volleyball
Bears face Cougars for rematch of the 2021 NCAA Second-Round matchup
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Nobody can ever accuse Ryan McGuyre of hiding or taking the easy way out.
Less than three weeks into the season, the 18th-ranked Baylor volleyball team (4-3) has already played three top-20 teams and will go up against two more this week, hosting 11th-ranked Washington State (8-1) at 7 p.m. Wednesday and No. 19 Ohio State (3-4) at 7 p.m. Friday at the Ferrell Center.
"I think we'll finish top-five strength of schedule, maybe even higher, when the season's over," said McGuyre, whose team went 3-0 at Colorado State's Ram Classic. "Our goal is to win championships, so we've really got to be tested through that. We've got to be warriors. . . . I'd rather experience going to Colorado State, going to Minnesota, so we can feel ready when we go to (No. 6) BYU to open up conference."
Led by freshman outside hitter Kyndal Stowers, named the Big 12 Rookie and Offensive Player of the Week, the Bears bounced back from a five-set loss to SMU with three-straight wins in the weekend tournament. They swept Colorado State and Pacific and knocked off Bowling Green, 3-1, in McGuyre's program-record 182nd win (now 183-66).
"Baylor feels like home," McGuyre said. "It's been such a unique journey here. My identity is in the Lord. But to be a part of a university that is so special, so mission-driven and surrounded by people that I'm just in alignment with their passions and their values, to me, is comforting. . . . I hope the next 180 come a lot faster than the first 180, and we're just focused on Washington State at this point."
Since a 3-0 loss to then-No. 4 Louisville on Aug. 26, Washington State has strung together seven-straight wins, including beating then-No. 8 BYU last Friday in the Cougar Challenge in Pullman. Baylor is 3-1 all-time against the Cougars, including a 3-0 sweep in an NCAA Tournament second-round matchup in Waco in 2021.
"Washington State is extremely good. They're physical, they're big," McGuyre said. "We have to be able to dig balls that are coming at the pace that we see our hitters hitting at each other in the gym. Just adapting within the match. I think when our initial game plans go in, we execute pretty well. When our opponents are making adjustments, part of our maturity is just making our adjustments faster, so we can finish off sets a little sooner."
Stowers, who had 77 kills in last week's four matches, ranks second in the Big 12 with 4.31 kills per set. Sophomore setter Averi Carlson is fifth in the league with 10.58 assists per set.
"I feel like we can see from our first match to now that we've made so many more big plays and put so much more good things together," said sophomore opposite-side hitter Allie Sczech, who is averaging 2.54 kills per set. I think we've made progress. I'm really proud of our team. Everyone has worked really, really hard, and that's never been a doubt in my mind."
Wednesday is Student Night for Baylor volleyball, with free pizza available to the first 100 students. There will also be a drawing for items like a signed McGuyre volleyball, sideline passes to the Sept. 23 football game against fourth-ranked Texas and more.
Both the Wednesday and Friday matches will be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with former Baylor All-American Katie Staiger Smith calling the action with KWTX news anchor Pete Sousa on Wednesday and "Voice of the Bears" John Morris on Friday.
WACO, Texas – The 18th ranked Baylor volleyball team is set to host No. 11 Washington State for a Wednesday night matchup at the Ferrell Center with start time set for 7 p.m. CT.
The Bears (4-3) faced the Cougars (8-1) as recently as 2021, when then-No. 6 Baylor defeated then-No. 22 WSU in the second round of the NCAA tournament in Waco. Baylor leads the all-time series, 3-1, with a 2-0 edge in Waco.
This will be the fourth ranked team the Bears have faced this season and the fourth top-20 opponent.
Baylor is coming off a 3-1 week, losing at SMU on Wednesday, but posting a 3-0 mark at Colorado State's Ram Classic with 3-0 sweeps of CSU and Pacific and winning in four over Bowling Green.
Freshman outside hitter Kyndal Stowers earned both Rookie and Offensive Player of the Week from the Big 12 Conference, the first time for a Bear since Yossiana Pressley in 2017 and the first for the league since 2021. The Denton, Texas, native had 77 kills over the four matches to lead not only the team but the conference as well.
With Stowers' help, the Bears led the league on the week in kills (230), kills per set (15.33), assists (218) and assists per set (14.53), while being second in hitting percentage at .348.
Head coach Ryan McGuyre earned his 182nd career victory at Baylor against Bowling Green in the second match of the tournament, making him the all-time winningest coach for the BU volleyball program.
Washington State comes to Waco after hosting UC Irvine, Towson and then-No. 8 BYU in Pullman for the Cougar Challenge, sweeping the first two matches but dropping one set to BYU. The Cougars jumped two spots in this week's AVCA poll to No. 11, the highest ranking for WSU since 2016.
WSU is on a seven-match winning streak after falling to 2022 NCAA runner-up Louisville in the Cardinal Classic on August 26.
Wednesday night's match is Student Night for Baylor volleyball, with free pizza available to the first 100 BU students along with drawings for items like a signed McGuyre volleyball, sideline passes to the Sept. 23 football game against Texas and more.
The match will be streamed on ESPN+ with Pete Sousa and former BU volleyball standout Katie Staiger Smith on the call. Live stats and links to watch the match on ESPN+ can be found at linktr.ee/baylorvball.
Fans interested in purchasing tickets for the Baylor Volleyball season can do so by visiting BaylorBears.com/Tickets. All seats are general admission for volleyball in the Ferrell Center.
To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
Baylor Bear Insider
Nobody can ever accuse Ryan McGuyre of hiding or taking the easy way out.
Less than three weeks into the season, the 18th-ranked Baylor volleyball team (4-3) has already played three top-20 teams and will go up against two more this week, hosting 11th-ranked Washington State (8-1) at 7 p.m. Wednesday and No. 19 Ohio State (3-4) at 7 p.m. Friday at the Ferrell Center.
"I think we'll finish top-five strength of schedule, maybe even higher, when the season's over," said McGuyre, whose team went 3-0 at Colorado State's Ram Classic. "Our goal is to win championships, so we've really got to be tested through that. We've got to be warriors. . . . I'd rather experience going to Colorado State, going to Minnesota, so we can feel ready when we go to (No. 6) BYU to open up conference."
Led by freshman outside hitter Kyndal Stowers, named the Big 12 Rookie and Offensive Player of the Week, the Bears bounced back from a five-set loss to SMU with three-straight wins in the weekend tournament. They swept Colorado State and Pacific and knocked off Bowling Green, 3-1, in McGuyre's program-record 182nd win (now 183-66).
"Baylor feels like home," McGuyre said. "It's been such a unique journey here. My identity is in the Lord. But to be a part of a university that is so special, so mission-driven and surrounded by people that I'm just in alignment with their passions and their values, to me, is comforting. . . . I hope the next 180 come a lot faster than the first 180, and we're just focused on Washington State at this point."
Since a 3-0 loss to then-No. 4 Louisville on Aug. 26, Washington State has strung together seven-straight wins, including beating then-No. 8 BYU last Friday in the Cougar Challenge in Pullman. Baylor is 3-1 all-time against the Cougars, including a 3-0 sweep in an NCAA Tournament second-round matchup in Waco in 2021.
"Washington State is extremely good. They're physical, they're big," McGuyre said. "We have to be able to dig balls that are coming at the pace that we see our hitters hitting at each other in the gym. Just adapting within the match. I think when our initial game plans go in, we execute pretty well. When our opponents are making adjustments, part of our maturity is just making our adjustments faster, so we can finish off sets a little sooner."
Stowers, who had 77 kills in last week's four matches, ranks second in the Big 12 with 4.31 kills per set. Sophomore setter Averi Carlson is fifth in the league with 10.58 assists per set.
"I feel like we can see from our first match to now that we've made so many more big plays and put so much more good things together," said sophomore opposite-side hitter Allie Sczech, who is averaging 2.54 kills per set. I think we've made progress. I'm really proud of our team. Everyone has worked really, really hard, and that's never been a doubt in my mind."
Wednesday is Student Night for Baylor volleyball, with free pizza available to the first 100 students. There will also be a drawing for items like a signed McGuyre volleyball, sideline passes to the Sept. 23 football game against fourth-ranked Texas and more.
Both the Wednesday and Friday matches will be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with former Baylor All-American Katie Staiger Smith calling the action with KWTX news anchor Pete Sousa on Wednesday and "Voice of the Bears" John Morris on Friday.
WACO, Texas – The 18th ranked Baylor volleyball team is set to host No. 11 Washington State for a Wednesday night matchup at the Ferrell Center with start time set for 7 p.m. CT.
The Bears (4-3) faced the Cougars (8-1) as recently as 2021, when then-No. 6 Baylor defeated then-No. 22 WSU in the second round of the NCAA tournament in Waco. Baylor leads the all-time series, 3-1, with a 2-0 edge in Waco.
This will be the fourth ranked team the Bears have faced this season and the fourth top-20 opponent.
Baylor is coming off a 3-1 week, losing at SMU on Wednesday, but posting a 3-0 mark at Colorado State's Ram Classic with 3-0 sweeps of CSU and Pacific and winning in four over Bowling Green.
Freshman outside hitter Kyndal Stowers earned both Rookie and Offensive Player of the Week from the Big 12 Conference, the first time for a Bear since Yossiana Pressley in 2017 and the first for the league since 2021. The Denton, Texas, native had 77 kills over the four matches to lead not only the team but the conference as well.
With Stowers' help, the Bears led the league on the week in kills (230), kills per set (15.33), assists (218) and assists per set (14.53), while being second in hitting percentage at .348.
Head coach Ryan McGuyre earned his 182nd career victory at Baylor against Bowling Green in the second match of the tournament, making him the all-time winningest coach for the BU volleyball program.
Washington State comes to Waco after hosting UC Irvine, Towson and then-No. 8 BYU in Pullman for the Cougar Challenge, sweeping the first two matches but dropping one set to BYU. The Cougars jumped two spots in this week's AVCA poll to No. 11, the highest ranking for WSU since 2016.
WSU is on a seven-match winning streak after falling to 2022 NCAA runner-up Louisville in the Cardinal Classic on August 26.
Wednesday night's match is Student Night for Baylor volleyball, with free pizza available to the first 100 BU students along with drawings for items like a signed McGuyre volleyball, sideline passes to the Sept. 23 football game against Texas and more.
The match will be streamed on ESPN+ with Pete Sousa and former BU volleyball standout Katie Staiger Smith on the call. Live stats and links to watch the match on ESPN+ can be found at linktr.ee/baylorvball.
Fans interested in purchasing tickets for the Baylor Volleyball season can do so by visiting BaylorBears.com/Tickets. All seats are general admission for volleyball in the Ferrell Center.
To stay up to date all year long on all things Baylor volleyball, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @BaylorVBall.
- BaylorBears.com -
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