Thurs., Dec. 1, 20112011 NCAA Division I Volleyball Tournament First Round4:30 p.m. — Wichita State (21-10) vs. Kansas State (20-10)
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Match Notes
Date: Thursday, Dec. 1, 2011
First Serve: 4:30 p.m. CST
Location: Lincoln, Neb.
Arena: NU Coliseum
Radio: KFH 1240 AM/98.7 FM
Talent: Brian Petrotta
Series: Kansas State leads, 37-15
Shocker Quick Hits
• Wichita State is making its sixth overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament. This marks the fifth-straight year the Shockers have advanced to the NCAA Tournament and sixth time in eight years (2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011).
• The Shockers hold an overall NCAA Tournament record of 4-5 and are 4-1 in first-round play. Wichita State lost in the first round of the 2010 tournament to Oklahoma, 3-0.
• WSU is ranked ninth in the nation in attendance (2,527 average) and had a season-high crowd of 4,528 Oct. 29 against UNI at Charles Koch Arena.
• The Shockers are ranked 18th nationally in hitting percentage (.262), 40th in kills per set (13.93) and 43rd in assists per set (12.89). Individually, Sarah Waldorf ranks 44th with 5.05 digs per set. Elizabeth Field's .356 and Ashley Andrade's .354 hitting percentage rank 33rd and 37th respectively.
• The Shockers advanced to the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament for the 10th year in a row and played in the championship match for the fifth time in school history Nov. 26 (1991, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2011). The top-seeded, No. 12-ranked UNI Panthers defeated the No. 3-seeded Shockers, 3-0, in the final match.
Shockers Receive NCAA Tournament At-Large Bid
Wichita State received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth season in a row. Thirty-one conferences were awarded automatic qualification and the remaining 33 tournament field spots were filled with at-large selections to create the 64-team field.
Shockers Play Kansas State in First Round
Wichita State will face 20-10 Kansas State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1. Jackson State (30-9) will face No. 2-ranked Nebraska (24-4) at 7 p.m. Dec. 1, or 30 minutes following the conclusion of the 4:30 p.m. match. Winners of the two first-round matches will meet at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 2 in second-round play.
Tournament Locations
First- and second-round matches are played at 16 campus sites, including Lincoln, Neb., where the Shockers will compete. Regional sites will be at Lexington, Ky., Minneapolis, Minn., Gainsville, Fla., and Honolulu, Hawaii Dec. 9-10. Regional winners will advance to the semifinals and final hosted by the University of Texas at San Antonio Dec. 15 and 17.
Tournament Breakdown
The Big Ten Conference led all conferences with eight teams selected. The Big 12 Conference has seven teams in the tournament. The Missouri Valley Conference sent three teams to the NCAA Tournament, including the Shockers, No. 12-ranked UNI and Missouri State. This marks the fourth time in MVC history that at least three Valley teams were selected and the sixth-straight season multiple MVC teams will participate.
Series History Against the First-Round Field
The Shockers, Kansas State, No. 2-ranked Nebraska, and Jackson State will be in Lincoln, Neb., Thursday, Dec. 1 for first-round matches. Wichita is 15-37 against Kansas State and 1-12 against Nebraska all-time and has not played Jackson State. The Shockers are 0-2 against Nebraska in NCAA Tournament play.
Top Seeds
The top 16 seeds of the tournament are: 1. Texas; 2. Nebraska; 3. Illinois; 4. Iowa State; 5. Purdue; 6. UNI; 7. Southern California; 8. Penn State; 9. UCLA; 10. Hawaii; 11. Stanford; 12. Florida State; 13. Minnesota; 14. Tennessee; 15. Pepperdine; 16. Texas A&M.
NCAA Tournament History
Ten schools have been crowned champion in the 30-year history of the NCAA Tournament. Penn State's volleyball team is a four-time defending champion, having won the 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 tournaments.
Wichita State in the NCAA Tournament
The Shockers are making their sixth NCAA Tournament appearance and will play in the tournament for the fifth season in a row. The Shockers lost in the first round of the 2010 tournament to Oklahoma, 3-0. In 2009, Wichita State beat Saint Louis, 3-1, in the first round, but lost to Iowa State, 3-0, in the second round. In 2008, the Shockers advanced to the second round, where they lost to Texas, 3-0. Nebraska defeated Wichita State, 3-0, in the second rounds of both the 2004 and 2007 tournaments.
Kansas State NCAA Tournament History
The Wildcats advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 13th time overall and eighth time in head coach Suzie Fritz's 11 years with the program. Kansas State is 12-12 all-time in the tournament. The Wildcats reached the Regional Semifinals of the tournament in 2000 and 2003 and advanced out of the first round each year but 2008 under Fritz. Thursday marks the Shockers' first NCAA Tournament match against the Wildcats and the first time Kansas State will meet a MVC opponent in the tournament.
Scouting Kansas State
The Wildcats finished the season 20-10 overall and 9-7 in Big 12 Conference play. Kansas State beat Kansas in four sets Nov. 23 to close the regular season. The Wildcats enter the tournament on two wins, having also defeated Texas Tech, 3-1, Nov. 19. Wildcat wins this season came against Tennessee Tech, Creighton, Georgia Southern, Idaho, Missouri State, Hofstra, South Dakota State, Drake, Sacramento State, Utah Valley, Saint Mary's, Baylor, Missouri twice, Texas Tech twice, Kansas twice, Texas A&M and Oklahoma. Losses came against Georgia Tech, Louisville, BYU, Texas A&M, Iowa State twice, Texas twice, Oklahoma and Baylor. Kansas State had a season-high nine-match winning streak Sept. 8-28. The Wildcats are hitting .218 while holding opponents to a .205 hitting percentage. Kaitlynn Pelger leads the Wildcats with 4.12 kills per set. Caitlyn Donahue has an 11.06 assists per set average. Kuulei Kabalis averages 3.74 digs per set. Head coach Suzie Fritz is in her 11th season at Kansas State.
Last Meeting vs. Kansas State
The last time Wichita State played Kansas State in volleyball was Aug. 25, 2007 when the Wildcats won, 3-1, in Wichita, Kan. The Wildcats won by scores of, 30-26, 25-30, 30-28 and 30-18.
Series History vs. the Wildcats
Kansas State leads the overall series with the Shockers, 37-15. The teams last met in 2007 and played one another for the first time in 1974.
Scouting Nebraska
The Cornhuskers (24-4) clinched their first-ever Big Ten title this season, which marked the program's 32nd conference title overall. Nebraska is 82-26 in 29 previous NCAA Tournament appearances and ranks second among NCAA schools in wins and winning percentage (.759). Gina Mancuso leads Nebraska with 3.54 kills per set. Lauren Cook averages a team-high 10.94 assists per set. Lara Dykstra picks up 3.62 digs per set. Head Coach John Cook is in his 12th season.
Scouting Jackson State
Jackson State University (30-9) won its first SWAC Tournament title this season and enters the NCAA Tournament on a 25-match winning streak. The Lady Tigers are competing in the NCAA Tournament for the first time and received their conference's automatic bid. Christin Edwards leads Jackson State with 4.21 kills per set. LaToya Clark has a team-leading 10.04 assists per set. Daedra Carline's 3.33 digs per set pace the Lady Tigers. Head Coach Rose Washington is in her 10th season.
20-Plus Wins
The Shockers have won 20 or more matches for the ninth-straight season. Wichita State went 21-10 in 2003; 25-6 in 2004; 28-3 in 2005; 25-7 in 2006; 27-6 in 2007; 30-2 in 2008; 26-7 in 2009 and 21-8 in 2010.
2011 State Farm MVC Tournament
Wichita State advanced to the MVC Tournament for the 16th time in school history. The No. 3-seeded Shockers beat No 6-seed Indiana State, 3-0, in the quarterfinals Nov. 24. Wichita State advanced to the semifinals where the Shockers defeated No. 2-seed Missouri State, 3-0, Nov. 25. In the Shockers' fifth-ever championship match appearance, the top-seeded UNI Panthers beat Wichita State, 3-0, claiming their third-straight MVC tournament title.
Wichita State on the All-Tournament Team
Wichita State's Emily Adney and Mary Elizabeth Hooper represented the Shockers on the MVC All-Tournament team. Adney led the Shockers with 40 kills in three tournament matches and an average of 4.44 kills per set. She also added a team-leading four solo blocks as part of her six total blocks on the weekend. Hooper paced Wichita State with 102 assists for an average of 11.33 per tournament match. She also added 43 digs and six block assists while posting three double-doubles.
MVC Volleyball All-Conference Shockers
Five Wichita State volleyball student-athletes received Missouri Valley Conference All-Conference recognition Nov. 24. Emily Adney, Mary Elizabeth Hooper and Camri Zwiesler were named to the first team, while Ashley Andrade and Elizabeth Field made the second team. Zwiesler was also named MVC Defensive Player of the Year.
Senior setter Hooper became the first Shocker in volleyball program history to receive first team all-conference honors four years in a row. Hooper, and Missouri State's Calli Norman, also became the third and fourth players in MVC volleyball history to receive the recognition four times.
Zwiesler, a senior outside hitter, is the second Shocker to receive the conference's defensive player of the year award since it was created in 2007. Wichita State's Sarah McGee won the award as a senior last season. Zwiesler, who made the all-conference second team in 2010, ranked first in the league in service aces per set (.30), third in points (3.68), seventh in kills per set (3.03), 14th in digs (3.39) and 16th in hitting percentage (.270). She recorded double-digit kills in all but six league matches and ranked second for the Shockers in both kills and digs. Her 14 double-doubles this season lead the league.
Junior outside hitter Adney led the league in kills per set (3.75) and points per set (4.30). She made the all-conference first team in 2010 as well.
Sophomore Andrade's hitting percentage led the league (.377), followed closely by Field's .366 hitting percentage. Field made the conference's All-Freshman team in 2010. This marked the first all-conference honor for Andrade.
Double-Doubles
Mary Elizabeth Hooper recorded three double-double performances during the MVC Tournament, and Camri Zwiesler added two more for the Shockers. Wichita State's players have combined for 28 double-doubles this season, led by Zwiesler's 16 — including six in November. Hooper has eight and Emily Adney has four double-doubles this season.
Winning Streak Snapped
The Shockers' seven-match winning streak — their longest of the season — ended Nov. 26 with a loss against top-seeded UNI in the MVC Tournament championship. Wichita State did not lose a set during the winning run, beating Drake, Southern Illinois, Evansville, Illinois State, Indiana State twice and Missouri State all 3-0 during the stretch.
Third-Best Hitting Percentage
Wichita State enters the NCAA Tournament with a team hitting percentage of .262, which currently ranks third in the Shocker record books. The Shockers hit .309 as a team in 2005 and .270 as a team in 2004. Wichita State also has held opponents to a .174 hitting percentage this season.
Four Shockers Scholar-Athletes
Four Wichita State volleyball student-athletes earned Missouri Valley Conference volleyball scholar-athlete recognition in 2011. Senior setter Mary Elizabeth Hooper was named to the 2011 MVC Scholar-Athlete First Team. Junior outside hitter Emily Adney, sophomore middle blocker Elizabeth Field and senior libero Sarah Waldorf received MVC Scholar-Athlete Honorable Mention, as voted by the league's volleyball sports information directors.
Hooper, from Plano, Texas, carries a 3.66 GPA in Health Science. This marks Hooper's third-straight year on the first team. Waldorf, from Augusta, Kan., has a 3.49 GPA in marketing and earned honorable mention recognition for the second-straight year. Adney, from Golden, Colo., has a 3.32 GPA in Communication-Integrated Marketing. Field, from Windsor, Calif., carries a 3.83 GPA in chemistry.
Hooper All-Time Assists Leader
Senior setter Mary Elizabeth Hooper moved into first place in the Shocker record books in career assists Nov. 4 at Creighton and continues to build on her career numbers. Hooper now has 4,796 assists in her career after adding 102 more in three MVC Tournament matches. She has averaged 10.66 assists per set during her college career. Hooper moved past Michele Hallagin who had 4,476 career assists from 1996-99 for the Shockers.
Waldorf Moving Up
Senior libero Sarah Waldorf recently moved into third place in the Shocker record books in career digs with 1,533. She added 50 digs last weekend in Cedar Falls, including a match-high 24 digs against UNI in the MVC championship match.
- Wichita State -
