Wichita State volleyball takes first place to Missouri State, SIU

On Oct. 2, Missouri State’s volleyball team departed Koch Arena with what appeared to be a crucial win in the Missouri Valley Conference race. The Bears defeated Wichita State 3-1 to establish themselves as the early favorite.

The Shockers recovered from that loss. The Bears failed to take advantage and are now on the outskirts of the race, looking up at first-place Wichita State. WSU (18-6, 9-1 MVC) plays at Missouri State (15-8, 6-4) at 7 p.m. Saturday as its longest road trip of the conference schedule winds down.

WSU started the weekend with a two-match lead over second-place teams Loyola and Southern Illinois, thanks to a seven-match win streak that started after the loss to MSU. Those victories also raised WSU’s power ranking (RPI) to No. 38, well within the range of usual NCAA at-large selections. WSU debuted at No. 64 when the NCAA released its ranking on Oct. 5.

On Monday, the Shockers play at Southern Illinois.

Missouri State is 3-4 since winning at Koch Arena, but its schedule is helpful. It plays at Evansville on Monday and finishes the regular season with four of its final six matches at home. The Bears host the MVC Tournament beginning Nov. 26 at Hammons Student Center.

To even the series, the Shockers must handle Bears outside hitter Lily Johnson, who dented them for 20 kills and 21 digs in the first meeting. Johnson, a sophomore, ranks second in the MVC in kills at 4.20 a set.

Running in Indiana — WSU’s women are picked second and the men third in the MVC cross country pre-championship poll.

WSU’s women received 87 points and one first-place vote, trailing defending champion Bradley’s 99 points and nine first-place votes. Bradley is also the men’s favorite with 77 points, followed by Indiana State (66) and WSU (65).

WSU’s women has four of the MVC’s top-10 5-kilometer times, led by Sidney Hirsch (17:14.59) in fifth and Rebekah Topham (17:20.58) in sixth. Brady Johnson owns the men’s third-best time 8-kilometer time (23:54.16).

The men’s 8-kilometer race starts at 10:30 a.m. Saturday in Evansville, Ind. The women’s 5-kilometer starts at 11:30.

MVC honors Deighton — WSU senior Kayla Deighan was named one of 10 fall athletes named an MVC’s Good Neighbor Award winner.

Deighan, from Newmarket, Ontario, earned the MVC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence award twice and was a 2015 member of the MVC’s track and field scholar-athlete team. She volunteered at the Prairie Fire Marathon and the Holy Cross Lutheran book fair.

Watch and learn from the Shockers — WSU’s men’s basketball team is holding a clinic, open to anyone over 18 who is not a recruitable athlete, at 2:45 p.m. Friday at Koch Arena.

Check-in begins at 2:15 p.m. and includes a tour of WSU’s locker room and practice. Cost is $100. For information call (316) 978-3252.

This story was originally published October 30, 2015 at 5:00 PM with the headline "Wichita State volleyball takes first place to Missouri State, SIU."