HOUSTON, Texas – Wichita State (13-7, 5-3) dropped a five-set heartbreaker to conference leader Rice (11-8, 7-1) at Tudor Fieldhouse. The Owls won by scores of 23-25, 25-22, 25-22, 20-25 and 15-10.
 
Sydney Dunning led the Shockers with 19 kills, while Brooklyn Leggett added 13 kills. Jordan Heatherly finished with a double-double with 29 assists and 13 digs, while Grace Hett added a career-high 22 digs.
 
The first set went back and forth until the Shockers used a 5-0 run to grab an 11-5 lead. Rice used an 8-1 run to take a 16-15 lead and the two teams traded points until a Brooklyn Leggett kill and Grace Hett service ace put the Shockers up 22-21. The Shockers reached set point 24-23 on a kill by Emerson Wilford and won the set 25-23 on a Rice hitting error.
 
The Shockers grabbed an early 7-3 lead in the second set, but Rice answered with five-straight to take an 8-7 lead. The Owls pushed the lead to 16-12 and then 22-16 after a 4-0 run. Rice reached set point at 24-17, but the Shockers scored five-straight before the Owls ended it with a 25-22 win.
 
Rice jumped out to a 9-6 lead in the third set, but a McKenzie Jones kill tied it at 12. Rice used a 3-0 run to take an 18-15 lead, but the Shockers came back to tie it at 20. The Owls scored five of the final seven points for the 25-22 win.
 
Two kills from Leggett and one from Maddie Wilson put WSU up 6-5 in the fourth set. Back-to-back kills from Jones pushed the lead to 12-9 and forced a Rice timeout. The Owls pulled within one at 18-17, but the Shockers reeled off five-straight points for a 23-17 lead. A Dunning kill brought the Shockers to set point at 24-18 and another Dunning kill ended it for a 25-20 win and force a fifth set.
 
The fifth set went back and forth early with Rice grabbing an 8-7 lead at the halfway point. WSU used kills from Jones and Leggett to take a 9-8 lead, but Rice answered with five-straight for a 13-9 advantage. The Shockers cut it to 13-10 after a block by Allie Paulsen and Leggett, but the Owls closed out the set 15-10 for the win.
 
The Shockers are next in action on Fri., Oct. 24 when they host Tulane at 7 p.m. inside Charles Koch Arena. It is Ladies Night and the first 300 fans receive a free T-shirt courtesy of Koch Industries. There is also a $5 wine special. Tickets are available at GoShockers.com/Tickets.