WICHITA STATE (8-8, 3-2 American)
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Wednesday, Oct. 12 (7:00 p.m. CT) vs. Tulsa (9-8, 2-3 American)
Wichita, Kansas (Charles Koch Arena)
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The Shockers battle midwestern rival and travel partner Tulsa on Wednesday night at Charles Koch Arena. The Shockers can move back above .500 and into sole possession of fourth place with a win.
The match will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Track live scoring at shockerstats.com.
SCENE SETTERS:
- Wichita State plays the final match of a record six-match homestand on Wednesday evening against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane at Charles Koch Arena.
- Due to the relocated match against UCF on October 2, the Shockers have played six consecutive home matches. It's the first time Wichita State has played six in a row at home since the 1992 season, when the Shockers played two conference matches and then hosted the Shocker Volleyball Classic.
- Wednesday's match is Greek Night at Charles Koch Arena in partnership with Wichita State's fraternities and sororities.
- The Shockers seek to continue their recent stretch of dominance over the Golden Hurricane. Wichita State is 24-3 in the last 27 meetings with Tulsa, though two of those defeats have come since the Shockers joined The American in 2017 (3-2 loss in Tulsa in 2018, 3-2 loss in Tulsa in 2019).
- A win over Tulsa is a crucial step in the Shockers hopes of a top-four conference finish. Sunday's loss to SMU has Wichita State two wins behind both the Mustangs and UCF, and three back of league-leading Houston, though the Shockers are missing a game that was postponed against South Florida. A loss would move the Shockers into a four-way tie in the middle of the pack with Memphis, East Carolina and Tulsa.
- The Shockers RPI climbed five spots from last week to its present 81 ranking.
- The 2022 home opener against Temple brought 2,316 fans out to Charles Koch Arena, the most for a match since the 2019 season when 2,387 paid to see the Shockers battle #3 Texas as part of the Shocker Volleyball Classic.
LOOKING BACK:
- Wichita State split a pair of matches over the weekend, rallying past Memphis 21-25, 28-26, 25-27, 25-19, 15-6 on Friday night before falling in straight sets to SMU on Sunday 25-21, 25-21, 25-12 at Charles Koch Arena.
- The two matches showcased some of the best and worst volleyball that the Shockers have played this season. In the decisive fifth set against Memphis, Wichita State's defensive unit held the Tigers to a -.174 hitting percentage (4-8-23), the best mark in a single set this season. On Sunday, however, SMU hit .571 (17-1-28) in the third set, the worst mark allowed this year by the Shockers.
- The Shockers were shorthanded for both matches as opposite Sophia Rohling and defensive specialist Lara Uyar were sidelined due to injury.
- Brylee Kelly filled the scoring void caused by Rohling's absence with two excellent matches, piling up 20 kills against Memphis and 13 more against SMU, hitting .264 and .222, respectively. Kelly averaged nearly 12 attempts per set in the two matches, well above her season average.
- Natalie Foster dominated the early stages of Sunday's match, pouring 11 kills on her first 15 swings. She finished the day with 13 putdowns, second-most in a match this season.
- Morgan Weber matched her career high with 23 digs on Friday, the fourth 20+ dig match of her Shocker tenure. Libero Lily Liekweg was one shy of a 20 dig performance of her own, settling for 19.
- Freshman Emerson Wilford delivered the best performance of her young career on Friday with eight kills, including four on just seven attempts in the fifth set.
WSU-TULSA SERIES:
- The Shockers hold a 36-15 lead in the all-time series. At one point, WSU won 23 of 24 matches in the series from 1985 to 1996.
- WSU is 4-0 against the Golden Hurricane in Wichita since joining the AAC and 3-2 in Tulsa.
- The Shockers knocked off Tulsa twice last season, a 3-1 win on the road and a 3-2 decision at Charles Koch Arena. In the latter matchup, Wichita State won the first two sets comfortably (25-14, 25-14) before Tulsa roared back to claim the next two and force extra points in the fifth. Tied 14-14, the Shockers got kills from Natalie Foster and Sophia Rohling to escape with the victory.
- Wichita State's last home loss to Tulsa came in 1980. The Shockers are 19-2 all-time against the Golden Hurricane in Wichita.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN HURRICANE:
- The Golden Hurricane enter play on Wednesday with an overall record of 9-8, including 2-3 in American Athletic Conference play. Tulsa most recently dropped a pair of home matches over the weekend to SMU (3-2) and Memphis (3-1).
- Tulsa consistently ranks among the nation's leaders in both digs and team attacks per set, this year currently holding down the top spot nationally in both categories (19.72 digs per set, 40.72 attacks per set). Libero Marta Pecalli leads the conference with 5.45 digs per set, and outside hitter Kayley Cassaday leads the nation with 14.11 attacks per set.
- Cassaday averages twice as many kills per set as the next closest Golden Hurricane (4.60 to Lauren Eitler's 2.30).
- Tulsa played in Wichita just a few days ago, falling to UCF in a neutral court match on September 30 that was moved to Kansas after the landfall of Hurricane Ian disrupted the scheduled match in Orlando.
- Head coach Ryan Wills is in his ninth season at the helm of the Golden Hurricane, bringing a record of 133-116 into play on Wednesday. A Tulsa alum, Wills spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Alabama before returning to lead the Golden Hurricane.
UP NEXT:
- The Shockers hit the road for the only three-match road swing of the 2022 AAC slate, taking on Cincinnati on Friday night and Houston and Tulane the following week. Wichita State will be off this Sunday because of the midweek game against Tulsa.
