Wichita State volleyball had its worst offensive performance of the season in a road loss against the No. 13-ranked University of Kansas on Wednesday evening.
The Shockers made 36 kills, 22 attack errors and hit .130 as a team en route to a 3-0 loss (25-17), (25-21), (25-19), against the Jayhawks in Lawrence.
With the loss, Wichita State’s record dropped to 2-2 overall while Kansas remained undefeated at 4-0.
Junior right-side and middle hitter Brooklyn Leggett made two kills in the early going of the first set, helping the Shockers take a narrow 3-2 advantage. The Jayhawks made a quick turnaround, scoring four unanswered points, 6-3.
Kansas didn’t look back once it took the lead, eventually taking the first set.
Junior libero Katie Galligan helped Wichita State take its largest lead of the night with a service ace, 5-2, in a back-and-forth second set. The Jayhawks answered with a four-point turnaround to retake the lead, 6-5.
Later in the set, Leggett made her fifth kill of the game to give the Shockers a 13-10 advantage. Kansas quickly closed the gap, eventually tying the game at 15. Wichita State went up 21-20 but after a replay review, the point was awarded to the Jayhawks, giving them the one-point advantage instead.
Although the Shockers made more kills than Kansas, the Jayhawks made two more service aces and three more blocks to help them win the second set.
Leggett made her seventh kill of the match to score the opening point for Wichita State in the third set. The set went point-for-point as the teams tied for the lead 10 times.
Two attack errors by Kansas gave the Shockers their last lead of the set, 6-4, and a service error by the Jayhawks resulted in the last tie of the set, 15-15.
Kansas then went on a 5-0 run that ceased all of Wichita State’s momentum, 20-15. The game was capped off with an attack error by senior libero Annalie Heliste, followed by a kill from the Jayhawks’ senior opposite hitter London Davis.
Redshirt freshman middle blocker Allie Paulsen made her first start and first game with more than a set played. She ended with six kills and led the Shockers in hitting percentage at .364. Junior outside hitter Emerson Wilford led the team with 10 kills and 12 digs.
After the midweek loss against Kansas, Wichita State volleyball will prepare for the Wooo Pig Invitational, in Fayetteville, Arkansas, from Friday, Sept. 6, to Saturday, Sept. 7.
The Shockers will play another top-25 ranked opponent when it faces off against No. 21-ranked University of Arkansas on Friday at 7 p.m.
