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Volleyball Preview: UAB, Rice

10/2/2024 2:57:00 PM

WICHITA STATE (7-7, 2-0 American)

Friday, Oct. 4 (7:00 p.m. CT) at UAB (5-8, 0-2 American)
Birmingham, Ala. (Bartow Arena)
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Sunday, Oct. 6 (1:00 p.m. CT) vs. Rice (7-4, 2-0 American)
Wichita, Kan. (Charles Koch Arena)
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Wichita State looks to continue an undefeated start to AAC play with a road match at UAB on Friday and a home battle against conference favorites Rice on Sunday.

Both matches will be streamed live on ESPN+. Live stats for both matches can be found at shockerstats.com.

SCENE SETTERS:
  • After kicking off the American Athletic Conference schedule with a pair of four-set victories, the Shockers look to continue their winning ways on the road at UAB Friday and at home against Rice on Sunday afternoon.
  • The Shockers are one of five AAC teams to start the conference slate at 2-0, joining Tulsa, Rice, South Florida and North Texas. No team in the conference enters the week with a winning streak of more than three.
  • After opening the conference schedule against teams picked 9th, 8th and 13th in the preseason poll, Wichita State will square off against four of the top five projected teams (Rice, South Florida, East Carolina, Florida Atlantic) over the next five matches.
  • The Shockers entered AAC play having failed to reach a .200 hitting percentage in eight of their nine previous matches, including two sub-.100 showings. Wichita State found their offensive rhythm against Memphis and Temple, hitting .333 and .302, respectively.
  • Setter Izzi Strand enters play on Friday needing just five assists to reach 3,000 for her career, while middle blocker Sarah Barham is 30 kills shy of 1,000.
  • The Shockers were picked second in the American Athletic Conference preseason poll. Rice was tabbed as preseason favorite, garnering eight first place votes to Wichita State's four. South Florida was picked third and received the final first place vote. Middle blocker Morgan Stout and setter Izzi Strand were both named preseason all-conference.
  • Head coach Chris Lamb is in his 25th season at the helm of the Shockers. Known affectionately as "Lambo," the veteran head coach owns a career record of 515-243, good for a .679 winning percentage and the most wins in the American Athletic Conference.
LOOKING BACK:
  • Wichita State survived a thrilling, back-and-forth fourth set to clip Temple 25-20, 20-25, 25-16, 27-25 on Friday night at Charles Koch Arena.
  • Alyssa Gonzales fired a season-high 17 kills and hit .355. The Shockers needed every one of those kills to emerge victorious in the fourth set, which featured 14 ties, six lead changes, and set points for both teams.
  • Temple had the set's biggest lead at 19-16, but Wichita State surged back to take a 22-20 advantage thanks to kills from Maddie Wilson, Morgan Stout and Brooklyn Leggett. The Owls responded by scoring four of the next five points to reach set point, 24-23, but Lexi Yoza misfired on the ensuing serve to give the Shockers new life. Stout's kill made it 25-24, answered by a kill from Temple's Chelci Banks to level the ledger, 25-25. Gonzales then tipped home her 17th kill of the night to reach match point and a Temple overpass was slammed down by Wilson for the match winner.
  • Wichita State sprinted out of the gates in the opening set, scoring six straight points. Temple did not roll over, thrice cutting the WSU lead to three late in the set at 20-17, 22-19 and 23-20, but a pair of attack errors helped the Shockers close out the frame, 25-20.
  • A tense second set hung in the balance until late in the stanza when Temple delivered a decisive run. The Owls led 21-20 after a Leggett kill but were able to put the foot down with four straight points, highlighted by a service ace that evened the match at a set apiece.
  • The only comfortable set of the evening came in the third, when Wichita State turned a 12-8 lead into 19-11 and cruised the rest of the way. WSU hit .450 in the set, getting four kills from Stout and limiting Temple to an .033 clip, the lowest for either side in a single set.
WSU-UAB SERIES:
  • The Shockers defeated UAB in the first meeting between the two teams last season at Charles Koch Arena, 25-13, 25-12, 25-10.
  • Wichita State out-hit the Blazers, .374-.012 and trailed for just a single point in the match.
  • Morgan Stout earned AAC Offensive Player of the Week honors after hitting .524 on a match-high 13 kills.
SCOUTING THE BLAZERS:
  • After limping to a 5-26 (3-16) mark in 2023, UAB is off to a significantly better start in 2024. The Blazers enter the week 5-8 (0-2), having already matched their previous season's win total.
  • UAB rattled off four straight wins to reach 5-2, but have since lost six consecutive matches including their first two AAC contests against Tulsa and Memphis. The crown jewel of the UAB non-conference slate was a win over Cincinnati, the program's first win against a Big 12 opponent in 16 years.
  • Do-everything junior Kelsey Smith has already registered two triple-doubles on season, including 12 kills, 18 digs and 21 assists in the conference opener against Tulsa.
  • Senior middle Madison Page leads the conference in blocks per set (1.13).
  • Head coach Betsy Freeburg is in her fifth season at the helm of the Blazers. A former assistant at both Samford and Georgia State and an all-conference middle at Florida, Freeburg owns a 41-71 record during her time in Birmingham.
WSU-RICE SERIES:
  • The Shockers and Owls have met six times in program history, with the series even at three matches apiece.
  • The two teams split a pair of matches last season in Houston; WSU rallied for a reverse sweep in the opener (23-25, 21-25, 25-22, 25-18, 15-8) before Rice responded with a 3-1 victory in the rematch (25-23, 13-25, 21-25, 22-25).
  • The Owls and Shockers have never played in Wichita.
  • One of the Wichita State victories in the all-time series is among the most memorable in program history. The Shockers and Owls squared off in the first round of the 2008 NCAA tournament, with WSU claiming a 21-25, 25-23, 25-15, 25-20 win. The 3-1 victory secured the first 30-win season in program history.
  • The Shockers bested Rice again the following season as part of the Mizuno Invitational in Houston, rallying once more for a 19-25, 25-16, 25-21, 25-21 win. Emily Stockman had 17 kills and 20 digs on her way to tournament MVP honors.
  • Rice claimed the first two meetings, knocking off the Shockers 3-1 in 1990 before sweeping Wichita State in 1995 as part of the Kansas State Invitational.
SCOUTING THE OWLS:
  • Rice brings a 7-4 (2-0) record into the week after wins against Tulane and UTSA to kick off the conference campaign.
  • The Owls are in their second season in The American after a strong tradition of success in Conference USA. Rice reached the NCAA tournament five consecutive seasons prior to 2023, which finished 18-11 (12-7). The 18 wins were the fewest in a season for Rice since the 2013 club went 11-19.
  • Like the Shockers, Rice played a challenging non-conference schedule that included three ranked teams (Baylor, Creighton, TCU).
  • Junior middle blocker Lademi Ogunlana is hitting .366 (second-best in the AAC) and poured in 18 kills in the Owls five-set win over Tulane last week.
  • Despite ranking 30th nationally with 16.50 digs per set, the Owls have struggled to slow down opposing attacks. Rice is allowing opponents to hit .213, due largely to a block that is contributing just 1.95 rejections per set.
  • Head coach Genny Volpe is responsible for turning Rice into a perennial power. The 21st-year head coach has led the Owls to eight NCAA tournament appearances; Rice had never reached the tournament prior to Volpe's arrival. Her 401-213 career record is good for a .653 winning percentage.
UP NEXT:
  • The Shockers stay home for a pair of matches against South Florida and Florida Atlantic on Friday and Sunday, respectively.
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