Wichita State volleyball was on the brink of losing its home Shocker Volleyball Classic tournament, but came back in thrilling fashion with big rallies in the third and fifth sets.
The Shockers would need every point to pull off a five-set (19-25), (25-21), (31-29), (17-25), (15-13) win in its Saturday matinee against the University of Nebraska Omaha.
“I knew it would be a dog fight … It was a huge win for us,” head volleyball coach Chris Lamb said.
The Shockers, now 5-7 overall, ended the weekend 2-1 following a win on Thursday against Cal Poly and a loss on Friday against Northern Colorado. Omaha’s record fell to 2-9 overall.
The win came despite Omaha out-hitting Wichita State in the game, .277 to .182. Omaha’s mark was the highest hitting percentage by a WSU opponent in a losing effort since 2016.
Good hustle on defense by sophomore libero Reagan Anderson and a kill by senior middle blocker Morgan Stout helped to keep the game close in the first set as the teams were tied at four early on.
The Mavericks later opened up a 5-point lead and 5-0 scoring run, aided by two Wichita State attacking errors and a service error. Stout ended the Shockers’ scoring drought and the Mavericks’ run with a kill, 19-15, but the late swings were not enough as Omaha took the set.
Wichita State opened the second set with a 3-0 scoring run that was matched by a 4-0 run by Omaha. The Shockers answered with a 4-0 run of their own to take a 7-4 lead.
Stout made her fifth kill of the game to put Wichita State ahead, 11-9, and redshirt freshman outside hitter Alyssa Gonzales eventually made her fifth kill of the game to break a tie at 14-all. Two more 3-0 runs late in the set by the Shockers helped them close out the set win.
Wichita State got out to an 8-4 lead in the third set after a 3-0 run that was capped off by a Leggett kill. 3-0 and 4-0 runs by the Mustangs eventually gave the away team a 3-point advantage, 15-12.
Two kills by Leggett and a kill by junior outside hitter Emerson Wilford helped the Shockers get back into the set and cut the deficit to a point, 16-15. Omaha would eventually go to set point, 24-20, but three errors by the Mavericks and a kill from Stout sent the set into extra points.
Nobody could get comfortable as the teams traded the set point six times before the Shockers finally took the win from a Stout service ace.
Stout said she didn’t know what the score was until the stadium lights went out, signaling Wichita State won the set.
“I literally, like, blacked out,” Stout said. “I didn’t even know what was going on.”
Omaha created a 5-0 run to take an 11-6 lead in set four, which was stopped by a kill by Wilford.
Later in the set, the Mavericks created an 8-point advantage, 19-11. The gap proved too much for the Shockers to overcome as the game was sent into a final set, despite six kills from Wilford.
To start the fifth set, Wichita State took a 5-point, 6-1 lead. Leggett helped the Shockers maintain the 5-point advantage later in the set with her 10th kill of the game, 12-7.
Omaha went on a 6-0 run with the help of a won challenge to come from the brink to take the lead, 13-12. Three straight kills from Stout decided the match.
In addition to her heroics at the end of the game, Stout led the Shockers in kills with 14 and added four blocks. Fifth-year Izzi Strand led the team in assists with 48 but also in digs with 17, a rarity for a setter and a season-high.
Lamb called the win a “catalyst” going into conference play.
“This was not a paved road,” he said. “And we got through the mud, the potholes and the rain.”
With Wichita State volleyball’s non-conference slate completed, the team will look to shift focus to American Athletic Conference play, which begins next on Wednesday, Sept. 25 at the University of Memphis. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and the first serve is scheduled for 6 p.m.
