WICHITA STATE (25-8, 15-4 American)
Tuesday, Dec. 12 (8:00 p.m. CT) at UTEP (25-9, 11-5 Conference USA)
El Paso, Texas (Memorial Gym)
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After winning four straight home matches, Wichita State heads to El Paso, Texas for the NIVC Championship on Tuesday night against UTEP.
The match will be streamed on ESPN+. Track live scoring throughout the evening at shockerstats.com.
SCENE SETTERS:
- Wichita State takes aim at their first national postseason championship on Tuesday night, squaring off against UTEP at Memorial Gym in El Paso for the NIVC title.
- The Shockers roll into the championship following a three-set win over Montana State on Saturday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena. Wichita State dropped just one set in four NIVC home wins.
- UTEP has also hosted all four previous NIVC matches, downing North Texas, UT Arlington and Clemson in four sets before sweeping South Florida on Sunday.
- WSU is looking for the program's second-ever road win in a national postseason tournament (at Kansas, 2012).
- The Shockers (62) and UTEP (64) were separated by just two spots in the final regular season edition of the RPI.
- Saturday's win earned head coach Chris Lamb his 10th 25-win season with the Shockers. Lamb won 25 or more matches six consecutive seasons from 2004-2009, and had most recently hit the milestone in 2017.
- Wichita State had two players represented on the AVCA North All-Region Team, the first time since the 2017 season that the Shockers have had multiple representatives. Middle blocker Natalie Foster earned a First Team spot for the second consecutive season and setter Izzi Strand was tabbed Honorable Mention.
- The Shockers won 13 home matches this season, their most since the 2008 campaign. The 13 home wins are tied for the most in a single season since the 2002 renovation of Charles Koch Arena (2004, 2008).
- Wichita State is the nation's only team with three players who have 1,000 career kills at a single school. Foster, Brylee Kelly and Sophia Rohling all reached the milestone this season.
LOOKING BACK:
- The Shockers survived a strong challenge from a battle-tested Montana State squad, besting the Bobcats 25-21, 26-24, 25-20 on Saturday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena.
- The win is Wichita State's 13th sweep out of 25 total victories on the season.
- The Shockers continued their theme of offensive dominance out of the middle, getting another efficient performance from the combination of Morgan Stout (14 kills, .565 hitting percentage) and Natalie Foster (six kills, .417).
- Foster's hitting percentage of .414 ranks 12th nationally. Her 349 kills are the most by any player ranked in the top 20.
- The Shockers battled back from a late deficit in the second set when Montana State had set point at 24-23, scoring three straight to escape with a 26-24 win. Dating back to the Drake match, Wichita State has won three consecutive sets in which the opponent has had at least one set point opportunity.
- Wichita State ranks in the bottom-10 nationally in aces per set at just over one per frame, but found several timely points at the service line against the Bobcats. Izzi Strand's ace in the second set gave WSU a 25-24 lead, then the Shockers fired three aces in the span of eight points late in the third set to create separation down the stretch.
- Montana State mustered just four total blocks against the Shockers, the fewest by any Shocker foe this season.
- The Shockers committed just 12 attack errors to 17 from Montana State. Over the course of Wichita State's run to the championship match, the Shockers have erred 50 times compared to 83 from their opponents.
WSU-UTEPÂ SERIES:
- The Shockers lead the all-time series against the Miners 6-2, with all eight meetings taking place in the sideout scoring era.
- Wichita State has made just one trip to El Paso, falling in four sets in 1991. UTEP has also been to Wichita just once (3-0 WSU win in 1989); the six other matchups have all been held at neutral sites.
- The two teams played most recently in 1991, with WSU claiming a 3-0 win at the Baylor Classic in Waco, Texas.
- In 1989, the Shockers and Miners faced off in three consecutive tournaments: the Shocker Sonic Blast in Wichita, the Tulsa Invitational and the Mean Green Classic in Denton, Texas.
SCOUTING THE MINERS:
- UTEP enters play on Tuesday with an overall record of 25-9, including an 11-5 mark in Conference USA play. The Miners finished in a three-way tie for second place in the conference with New Mexico State and Middle Tennessee State; Western Kentucky went 16-0 to claim the league's automatic berth to the NCAA tournament.
- The Miners are making their second deep run in the NIVC in recent years. The 2021 club reached the semifinals where they were defeated by eventual champion UNLV. The two NIVC appearances are the only two postseason trips in program history.
- UTEP bested fellow American Athletic Conference foes North Texas and South Florida on their way to the championship match. Earlier this season, the Miners also defeated AAC member Tulane in New Orleans.
- The Miners boast one of the nation's most potent offensive attacks, both at the service line and in the flow of play. UTEP ranks 10th nationally with 1.97 service aces per set and 20th with a hitting percentage of .274. Kansas native Torrance Lovesee paces the attack with 2.62 kills per set.
- Defensively, middle blocker Kaya Weaver is a force to be reckoned with. The sophomore ranks sixth nationally with 166 total blocks and notched eight apiece in the NIVC wins over North Texas and Clemson.
- The Miners average the fourth-fewest digs in the country, logging just 10.89 ups per set.
- Head coach Ben Wallis is in his fifth season in El Paso, bringing an overall record of 89-52 into play on Tuesday. Wallis led the Miners to a 24-win season in 2021, the most wins for UTEP volleyball since 1988. Prior to taking the reigns in El Paso, Wallis served as an assistant coach at both New Mexico and New Mexico State. His wife, Leah, is a former player at New Mexico State.
UP NEXT:
- The Shockers conclude the 2023 season.
