Texas Tech University Athletics
Red Raiders Take On Kansas State, Kansas
October 22, 2001 | Women's Volleyball
Oct. 22, 2001
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TECH TAKES ON THE STATE OF KANSAS, LITERALLY
The Texas Tech volleyball team will literally take on the State of Kansas this week as the squad travels to Manhattan on Wednesday night for a match with Kansas State and then returns home on for a Saturday match-up with Kansas. As the second half of Big 12 play begins for Tech, the Red Raiders will be looking for series sweeps of both schools. Texas Tech defeated then 22nd ranked Kansas State 3-1 back on Sept. 22 and dropped Kansas 3-2 on Oct. 6th.
Texas Tech enters this week with a 12-7 overall record and 5-5 mark in the Big 12 Conference. Texas Tech went 1-2 this past week in league play with the only win coming against the Baylor Bears in Waco last Wednesday night. The Red Raiders dropped two home matches to Texas and No. 2 Nebraska.
A LOOK AT THE WILDCATS
Texas Tech faces a daunting task this week as the Red Raiders have got to figure out a way to earn the school's first-ever win at Ahearn Field House. The Kansas State Wildcats sport an overall record of 11-5 and a 7-3 mark in the Big 12. The Wildcats are presently 26th in the AVCA Coaches Top-25 poll.
The Wildcats have just one home loss on the season and that came at the hands of the Nebraska Cornhuskers who blanked KSU 3-0 on Oct. 1. Kansas State is presently on a three-match win streak after defeating the Oklahoma Sooners 3-0 on Wednesday, Oct. 19th.
The Wildcats are led by senior outside Liz Wegner who tallies 287 kills and 177 digs. Wegner is third on the team with a .224 hitting percentage (287-119-750). Defensively, Kansas State is being led by junior outside hitter Jenny Pollard who totals 212 digs.
Kansas State is coached by Suzie Fritz who is 11-5 in her first season.
BREAKING DOWN KANSAS
The Kansas Jayhawks will come to Lubbock on Saturday night for a 7 p.m. match with Texas Tech. The Jayhawks enter this week with an overall record of 12-9 and have a 2-8 record in the Big 12. Kansas plays Oklahoma on Wednesday night in Lawrence and will be looking to put an end to a six-match Big 12 losing streak. Kansas' last win in the Big 12 came against the Colorado Buffaloes on Sept. 29th.
Kansas is led by Sarah Rome who totals 263 kills on the season and 181 digs. Leading the KU offense, is setter Molly LaMere who totals 932 assists on the season and 12.43 assists-per-game.
RAIDERS RANK NATIONALLY
Texas Tech features two players ranked in two different categories in the latest NCAA national statistics released on Oct. 14th. As a team, Texas Tech ranks in three categories.
Senior setter Skydra Orzen is the leading setter in the nation as she tallies 1,017 assists and a 14.12 assist-per-game average. Defensively, junior outside hitter Ann Romjue is ranked 28th nationally in digs with 201 and a 3.72 dig-per-game average.
As a team, Texas Tech ranks 11th in total assists with 1,119, 18th in digs with 1263 and is tied for 12th in kills with 1222.
TECH BEGINS SECOND HALF OF BIG 12 PLAY Texas Tech will kickoff the second half of Big 12 play this Wednesday night when the squad travels to Manhattan, Kansas for a battle with the Kansas State Wildcats. Texas Tech finished the first half of league play with a 5-5 record which places the Red Raiders in seventh place in the league standings.
In order for Texas Tech to earn its second-consecutive NCAA birth, the Red Raiders must improve their standing in the league to at least sixth place.
PLAYING BETTER ON THE ROAD?
Thanks to a 3-2 win over the Baylor Bears on Wednesday night in Waco, Texas Tech now has a three-game road winning streak, however, that three-game winning streak represents all of Tech's road wins this season.
Texas Tech picked up its first road win of the season on Oct. 6 in Lawrence, Kan. against the Kansas Jayhawks and has since won matches at Oklahoma and Baylor. In quite a turn of events, Texas Tech has now lost three consecutive home matches marking the first time Tech has lost back-to-back matches at the United Spirit Arena much less three-straight.
THIS AND THAT
- Texas Tech is a 8-3 at home this season and 21-5 all-time at the United Spirit Arena. Texas Tech is currently on a three-match home losing streak.
- Head Coach Jeff Nelson is now four wins away from earning his 150th career win as a head coach.
- Kansas State leads the all-time series with Texas Tech 8-7.
- Texas Tech leads the all-time series with Kansas 10-2.
- No. 2 Nebraska held Texas Tech to a season-low .000 team hitting percentage which ranks the match in a third-place tie for the worst team hitting percentage in school history.
- Texas Tech has four players who total 150+ kills on the season (Angela Mooney - 168, Kelly Johnson - 200, Melissa McGehee - 234, Heather Hughes-Justice - 198).
- Junior outside hitter Melissa McGehee needs just 10 kills to reach the 800 kills in her career at Texas Tech. She currently ranks 13th on the all-time kill list at Tech and will move into 12th place when she reaches 800.
- Senior outside hitter Heather Hughes-Justice tallied her 1,000th career dig in the match against Nebraska. Hughes-Justice now has 1,001 career digs.
