WICHITA STATE (11-6, 5-3 American)
 
Wednesday, Oct. 20 (6 p.m. CT) at Tulsa (10-7, 5-3)
Tulsa, Oklahoma (Donald W. Reynolds Center)
Live Stats // ESPN+
 
Sunday, Oct. 24 (11 a.m. CT) at Temple (5-14, 1-7)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (McGonigle Hall)
Live Stats // ESPN+
 

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On the heels of two thrilling five-set wins at home, WSU now seeks to extend a five-match winning streak on the road at Tulsa and Temple.

Each of the next four matches are away from home for Wichita State. All matches will air on ESPN+. For more information about subscriptions, which start at $6.99/month, visit plus.espn.com. Track live scoring throughout the weekend at shockerstats.com.
 

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SCENE SETTERS:

• WSU overcame a pair of two-sets-to-one deficits against ECU on Friday and Cincinnati on Sunday to extend their winning streak to five matches.
• The wins gave WSU its longest AAC winning streak since the 2017 season when it finished 20-0 in league play.
• Setter Kayce Litzau was named to AAC Weekly Honor Roll for the second time in the last three weeks after twice setting a new career high for kills (6 and then 7).
• The Shockers improved to 6-1 this season in five-set matches.
• WSU begins a stretch of four straight road matches on Wednesday vs. Tulsa, their designated travel partner in the American. Following the road stretch, the Shockers play four in a row at home.
• WSU climbed from 59 to 55 in this week's RPI - second among AAC schools, behind UCF (28).
• The Shockers have won three consecutive matches against Tulsa, including a pair of road wins against the Golden Hurricane during the spring of 2021. Temple has won each of the last two meetings after WSU took the first three AAC matchups. Both wins for the Owls came at McGonigle Hall, though the two teams have not played one another since the 2019 season.
• During the nonconference portion of the schedule, WSU picked up wins over Missouri State (RPI 80) and Arkansas State (117) and took a five-setter against South Dakota (119).
• The Shockers won the A-State Invitational (Aug. 27-28) to open the season but subsequently missed the SDSU Invite and a significant stretch of practice time due to COVID-19 issues within the program. The Shockers returned to action Sep. 10-11 with a 2-1 weekend at the Kansas Invitational.
• WSU is 6-1 in five-set matches (only lost to UCF).
• Head coach Chris Lamb recorded his 450th career win earlier this month. Lamb is one of only 24 active Division I coaches who have reached that milestone while winning more than two-thirds of their matches (456-211, .683).
• The Shockers (9-8 last spring) return five starters, including all-conference opposite Sophia Rohling, and are picked eighth in the American Athletic Conference.
• 18 of the 20 players on WSU's roster are underclassmen by eligibility and only four rotation players (Brylee Kelly, Lily Liekweg, Kayce Litzau and Rohling) have been in the program for more than two seasons.

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WSU-TULSA SERIES:

• The Shockers hold a 34-15 lead in the all-time series.
• At one point, WSU won 23 of 24 matches in the series from 1985 to 1996. WSU is 3-0 against the Golden Hurricane in Wichita since joining the AAC and 3-2 in Tulsa.

 
SCOUTING TULSA:

• The Golden Hurricane enter the week 10-7 overall and 5-3 in The American.
• Tulsa's season-opening tournament (Husker Invitational) was canceled; they then went 2-1 at Maverick Classic, 1-2 in the Tulsa Invitational, and 2-1 at the Redhawks Invitational.
• Tulsa already owns three conference road wins, including victories at Houston and SMU.
• The Golden Hurricane rank in the bottom third of the conference in most offensive categories, but are top-20 nationally in digs (17.85 per set).
• Kayley Cassaday leads the way offensively, ranking second in the AAC with 3.87 kills per set.
• Tulsa is coming off a four-set loss on Friday to Cincinnati before knocking off East Carolina in four sets, both at home.

 
WSU-TEMPLE SERIES:

• The Shockers lead the all-time series 3-2, with all five meetings occurring in American conference play.
• WSU took the first three matchups, with Temple claiming the last two. Both Shocker defeats came in Philadelphia.
• The two teams have not met since the 2019 season.

SCOUTING TEMPLE:

• The Owls enter the week 5-14 and 1-7 in American conference play.
• They picked up their first AAC victory of the season on Friday with a five-set win against winless South Florida, before falling in straight sets to UCF.
• Temple is allowing opponents to hit .250 on the season, the worst mark in the American. In AAC play, that number stands at .254.
• The Owls played only one non-conference tournament away from home, dropping two of three contests at the Tiger Invitational in Towson, Maryland.
• The combination of Taylor Davenport and Chelci Banks forms a strong block, as the freshman duo ranks second and fourth in the conference in blocks per set at 1.28 and 1.12, respectively.
• Temple ranks last in the conference in aces per set. The Owls do not have a single player in the top 20 of the conference rankings in aces.
• The Owls are led by 11-year head coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam, the 2021 American Co-Coach of the Year.
• Temple was picked sixth in the American preseason poll, two spots ahead of Wichita State.

 

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UP NEXT:

• The Shockers continue the road swing with a trip to the Sunshine State for meetings with South Florida (Oct. 29, 6 p.m.) and UCF (Oct. 31, Noon).
• Both matches air on ESPN+.
• WSU then plays six of its last eight matches at home, beginning Friday, Nov. 5 against Houston.