After COVID-19 disruption, Wichita State volleyball team will play at KU on Friday
After skipping a tournament out of caution regarding COVID-19, the Wichita State volleyball team is expected to return to action on Friday when it opens play at the Kansas Invitational in Lawrence.
The Shockers (3-0) will play a doubleheader on Friday, starting with Kent State (3-4) at noon followed by the host KU (2-3) at 7 p.m., then wrap up play against Delaware (5-1) at 11 a.m. Saturday. WSU will not have a radio broadcast, while only the WSU-KU match will be available to watch for ESPN+ subscribers.
It will be the first action for WSU in nearly two weeks after the team withdrew from last weekend’s tournament at South Dakota State due to COVID-19-related issues within the program. A WSU spokesperson said the team was still able to practice last week, but declined to confirm if the entire roster will be available this weekend.
One of the brightest spots from the season-opening 3-0 weekend was the play of freshman Lauren Phillips, who was the surprise starter at setter who handled WSU’s offense in a return to a 5-1 system. In three starts, Phillips averaged 8.6 assists and 2.3 digs per set and helped lead the Shockers to straight-set wins over Missouri State and Tennessee Martin.
WSU head coach Chris Lamb was particularly impressed by Phillips because it was her first time on the court in a meaningful game in nearly three years. The Stillwater native missed her junior year of club season due to a wrist injury, then lost her senior high school season and first year at WSU due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“Between Lauren, Hailey (Plugge) and Kayce (Litzau), we had a pretty tight competition for who was going to start at setter because they were all improving,” Lamb said on his radio show. “With a week to go, all of their statistics as back-row setters were pretty even with games won, drills won, setting statistics. It was really tight. But where Lauren ran away with it was her front-row numbers were really good because she could keep it high enough for (hitter) Brylee Kelly. Lauren is also the best blocker out of the group and when you start digging into the rallies, she was the best in terms of moving the scoreboard for us.”
Lamb said Plugge, another freshman setter, was actually the most impressive in the group at the start of fall practices until Phillips made her late charge. But Litzau, as a three-year sophomore, is the veteran of the group and remained ready to make an impact.
That mindset helped prevent WSU from suffering its first loss, as Litzau was inserted in the middle of the Arkansas State match with the Shockers trailing and helped WSU erase a 2-1 deficit to win two straight sets for the match victory. She finished with 40 assists, 13 digs and four blocks.
“Hats off to Kayce, she came in and saved the day and led our team to a good comeback,” Lamb said. “She asked me during the tournament, ‘What do I need to do to get on the floor?’ And we explained to her and showed her the stats and the numbers and how we’re making the evaluation. Credit to her, she was a great teammate and then when we called upon her, she went out there and led our team.
“This young team had every opportunity to fold up the tent and go home. I’m so proud of them for being resilient and coming back. Kayce had a lot to do with that.”
WSU has a fourth setter that could eventually work her way into the mix, but freshman Zofia Szczotkiewicz has been unable to practice due to an injury.
After nearly two more weeks of practice, Lamb could go with any of the three healthy setters to run WSU’s offense this weekend in Lawrence. Regardless of who he picks, the setter will have plenty of firepower to work with.
Sophomore outside hitter Brylee Kelly entered the season with plenty of hype and backed it up by leading WSU with 3.45 kills per set while hitting .341. Sophomore opposite hitter Sophia Rohling was a preseason first-team all-conference pick, while freshman transfer Kailin Newsome made a strong debut by racking up 3.26 kills per set in the opening tournament. Not to mention, Lamb believes WSU has a foundation for success with his three freshmen middles in Natalie Foster, Lauren McMahon and Morgan Stout.
Yazmine Wright named AAC Cross Country Athlete of the Week — The Hutchinson native and Wichita State senior earned the honor after winning her first collegiate cross country race last weekend on her home course, taking the J.K. Gold Classic title in a personal-best time of 17 minutes, 34.10 seconds in the 5-kilometer race.
Wright, who finished fifth at last year’s AAC cross country championships, is a two-time all-conference runner for the Shockers. She beat the field last Saturday by 39 seconds.
The WSU cross country team is back in action on Saturday, Sept. 18 for a meet hosted in Lincoln, Neb.
Wichita State baseball announces fall schedule — The Shockers will play in three fall baseball games in addition to their annual, five-game Fall World Series.
WSU opens the fall season on Monday, Sept. 13 against Cowley College in an extended-inning game scheduled for 3 p.m. at Eck Stadium. The next fall game will be on Monday, Sept. 27 when WSU hosts Team Canada, comprised of high schoolers, at 4 p.m. at Eck Stadium. Tickets to both games will be sold for $5.
The Shockers wrap up their outside competition on Saturday, Oct. 2 when they travel to Nebraska for a noon first pitch.
The Shocker Fall World Series begins on Saturday, Oct. 9 at Eck Stadium. The series will last five games with games on Oct. 11, Oct. 12, Oct. 15 and Oct. 16. Rosters for the World Series will be announced later. Admission to World Series games will be free.
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