November 15, 2005
Texas A&M (12-12, 5-10 Big 12) aims to avenge a Big 12 Conference season-opening loss at Kansas, while the Jayhawks (15-11, 7-10 Big 12) will be looking for their first victory in College Station when the two teams meet Wednesday. First serve is at 6:30 p.m. at G. Rollie White Coliseum, where A&M is 10-0 all-time against the Jayhawks. (A complete release in pdf format is available at AggieAthletics.com.)
Live stats, audio and video streaming of the match will be available at AggieAthletics.com.
The Aggies, who have climbed to eighth in the Big 12 after winning three of their last four matches, are coming off a five-game home victory against Kansas State on Saturday.
Kansas, which is in sixth place in the Big 12 standings, comes in riding a three-match winning streak. Most recently, the Jayhawks swept Texas Tech Saturday in Lawrence.
A Look at the Aggies: Laura Jones, who tied school records with 35 kills and 39 points in A&M?â„¢s five-game victory against Kansas State, leads the Aggies and the nation with 5.95 kills per game. A second-team All-American in 2004, Jones has led or tied for the team lead in kills in 23 of 24 matches and accounts for 38 percent of the Aggies?â„¢ total kills for the season. Already A&M?â„¢s all-time leader in kills, Jones needs 54 more total kills in the remaining five matches to break the single season record of 577 kills set by Sheila Morgan in 1993. Jones also excels on defense, where she averages more than three digs per game this season and is 12 digs shy of 1,151 career digs, which would move her into 10th in the A&M career annals.
Junior middle blocker Christi Hahn leads the team with a .291 hitting percentage. She also ranks second in kills (2.6) and points (3.36) per game.
Libero Holly Clay anchors the A&M defense and ranks second in the Big 12 with 4.18 digs per game. She has 372 digs and needs 32 more to break into the A&M top 10 for digs in a season.
Senior setter Kari Kelley is averaging 10.75 assists per game,
Freshman outside hitter Lindsey Yon, who has started 10 matches --including each of the last six contests --, has reached double figures in kills in six matches this season, including four times in the last seven matches.
A&M must win three of its final five matches to be eligible to receive an at-large berth to the NCAA tournament and avoid its first losing season since 1990. The Aggies have three home matches remaining -- against Kansas, Texas Tech and Iowa State -- as well as matches at both No. 24 Colorado and No. 11 Missouri.
A Look at the Jayhawks: Kansas has three active players averaging more than three kills per game, including senior 6-0 middle blocker Josi Lima who leads Kansas with 3.43 kills and 1.09 blocks per game. Senior setter Andi Rozum, the Jayhawks?â„¢ all-time leader in career assists, directs the offense and ranks fourth in the Big 12 with 12.88 assists per game. Libero Jamie Mathewson leads the backcourt defense with 3.39 digs per game.
Kansas has been without junior outside hitter Jana Correa, who was leading the squad with 3.6 kills and a .255 hitting efficiency before suffering a season-ending injury against Kansas State on Oct. 5. The Jayhawks, who entered that match with a 12-3 mark, have gone 3-8 since Correa went down. Correa had 14 kills, a .333 hitting percentage and two blocks in the Jayhawks?â„¢ sweep against the Aggies.
Kansas, which tied Colorado for sixth place in the Big 12 in 2004 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament, has two matches remaining in the regular season: at home against No. 11 Missouri on Nov. 23 and at Iowa State on Nov. 26.
The All-Time Series: Texas A&M leads the all-time series against Kansas, 17-3, including a 10-0 mark in matches played at G. Rollie White Coliseum.
The teams have split the season series the previous two years with each team winning on its home court. Kansas has swept the Aggies in each of their last three visits to Lawrence, accounting for all three of the Jayhawks all-time victories against A&M.
The two teams last met in the 2005 Big 12 opener with the Jayhawks downing then-No. 15 A&M, 30-26, 30-27, 30-19, at Horejsi Family Athletics Center. Kansas had 52 kills and a .314 hitting efficiency in the match and was led by Josi Lima, who had 19 kills and a .467 hitting percentage, as well as 11 digs and four blocks. Jana Correa added 14 kills while hitting at a .333 clip, and Emily Brown hit .375 with 10 kills.
A&M was held to 39 kills and a .142 hitting percentage, including a .000 efficiency in the third game. Laura Jones was the only player to reach double figures in kills with 17, but she was held to a .109 hitting percentage.
Upcoming: After a trip to Colorado on Saturday, Nov. 19, A&M returns home Monday, Nov. 21 to host Texas Tech. Match time is 6 p.m.
The Aggies celebrate Senior Day on Wednesday, Nov. 23 and will recognize Cristin Burton, Holly Clay, Kendra Felder, Laura Jones and Kari Kelley prior to their match against Iowa State at 6:30 p.m.
A&M concludes the regular season at No. 11 Missouri Saturday, Nov. 26 at 6:30 p.m.