November 03, 2006
The Texas A&M and Kansas State volleyball teams both will be looking to get back into the win column when the two meet Saturday in Manhattan. First serve is slated for 1 p.m. at Ahearn Field House.
A&M also will be looking for its first ever win at Ahearn, as the Wildcats have won all 10 meetings against the Aggies in Manhattan.
A&M dropped its third consecutive match and fell to 10-12 overall and 3-11 in Big 12 action after falling to Baylor, 30-24, 27-30, 34-32, 30-16, Wednesday in College Station. With the loss, the Aggies remain tied with Kansas for ninth place in the Big 12 standings.
K-State suffered its fourth straight loss Wednesday, falling at Colorado, 3-2 (27-30, 37-35, 33-31, 23-30, 15-12). It marked the Wildcats?â„¢ sixth five-game conference loss of the season. With the loss, the Wildcats drop to 9-15 overall and remain in last place in the league with a 1-13 mark.
K-State?â„¢s only league win was a 3-1 decision against Texas Tech on Oct. 18 in Manhattan. The Red Raiders defeated A&M, 3-2, in College Station on Oct. 4.
Senior middle blocker Christi Hahn leads the Aggies and ranks fourth in the Big 12 with a .361 hitting percentage for the full season. She also leads the team with 0.32 aces per game and is second with 3.27 kills and 4.08 points per game.
Freshman outside hitter Mary Batis leads A&M with 3.75 kills and 4.13 points per game, and junior middle blocker Kelly Stanton is averaging a team-leading 1.29 blocks per game. Freshman libero Zanny Castillo is the leader in digs with 3.29 per game.
Sandy Werner, K-State?â„¢s lone senior, leads the Wildcats with 3.49 kills per game. Junior setter Stacey Spiegelberg ranks sixth in the Big 12 with 12.24 assists per game, and junior libero Angie Lastra is averaging 4.53 digs per game, ranking fourth in the league. Sophomore Megan Kroeker is third in the conference with 1.44 blocks per game after posting eight blocks at Colorado and helping the Wildcats set a team school record with 25 total blocks against the Buffaloes.
THE ALL-TIME SERIES
K-State leads the all-time series against the Aggies, 12-10, including 12-9 in Big 12 matches only. In addition, the Wildcats have won seven of the last 10 meetings and are 10-0 in home matches against the Aggies.
The teams have split the season series the last two years, with each team winning on its home court. Earlier this season in College Station, A&M picked up its first Big 12 Conference victory of the season and left K-State still searching for its first league win as the Aggies defeated the Wildcats, 30-28, 30-26, 20-30, 20-30, 15-10, in front of 1,960 at G. Rollie White Coliseum.
The Aggies, playing in their third consecutive five-game match, snapped a three-match losing skid, while K-State suffered its fourth consecutive loss and fell to 0-3 in conference play, marking the first time the Wildcats were winless after three Big 12 matches.
A&M used a balanced attack with four players reaching double figures in kills. Sarah Ammerman led the team with 18 kills. Mary Batis and Christi Hahn had 15 kills apiece and Kelly Stanton pitched in a then-season-high 14. Batis tied libero Zanny Castillo for team-high honors in digs with 20, and setter Courtnee Rhodes also reached double digits in digs with a career-high 15.
Sandy Werner led the Wildcats with 19 kills, and Ginta Gabruseva added 12. Big 12 dig leader Angie Lastra led all players with 29 digs, which remains the most by an A&M opponent this season.
A&M quickly jumped out to a 6-1 lead in the decisive fifth game following a solo block by Kelsey Bryant. K-State never got closer than two points, the last time coming at 12-10. Batis, Ammerman and Bryant then posted back-to-back-to-back kills to clinch the victory.
A&M which was held to a .177 hitting percentage for the match, hit .318 in the final stanza. K-State, which hit .212 for the match, was held to a match-low .087 hitting efficiency in the final frame.
UPCOMING
A&M takes on No. 8 Texas Wednesday in the State Farm Lone Star Showdown. First serve is at 7 p.m. at Gregory Gym in Austin, and the match will be televised by CSTV.