K-State and Creighton wrapped up the preseason with an exhibition match Friday night at D.J. Sokol Arena, as the Wildcats were able to take the final set of the predetermined four-set match with the 13th-ranked Bluejays, 17-25, 18-25, 21-25, 26-24. According to a release from K-State.
Redshirt senior outside hitter Kylee Zumach led all players with 18 kills, including six in the final set, while hitting a team-best .444. Zumach added 11 digs for her double-double. Freshman opposite Gloria Mutiri turned in 15 kills along with eight digs.
“I thought we had some individual performances that were really positive,” head coach Suzie Fritz said following the match. “Kylee Zumach’s effort was as collective as she’s ever had, in regards to kill production, swing management, dig effort and passing.
“It was Gloria’s first real go with the team and from an attacking perspective, specifically, I thought she did a really nice job there.”
Setter Sarah Dixon handed out 44 assists to go with 12 digs, matching libero Devan Fairfield’s team-best dozen digs. Middle blocker Macy Flowers, who led K-State in blocks a season ago, led the Cats with three block assists.
In its fourth-set win, K-State hit .410, as it recorded 18 kills on 39 attacks with just two errors. The Cats hit at a higher efficiency in each of the match’s final two sets.
Creighton, the nation’s preseason No. 13 team, led throughout the opening set on its way to a 25-17 set win. K-State dug out of an early hole and cut the Bluejays’ lead to three at 17-14, but CU closed out Set 1 on an 8-3 run, outhitting the Wildcats .486-.306.
Mutiri tallied six kills while Zumach had five kills to lead K-State in the first set. Flowers had a pair of kills while Fairfield recorded four digs.
With the second set knotted at 14, Creighton went on a 6-0 spurt as part of an 11-4 run to close out Set 2, 25-18. CU limited the Cats to a team hitting percentage of .075 courtesy of five team blocks. Zumach added four kills in the set while Peyton Williams totaled three.
Another six-point run by Creighton early in Set 3 sparked CU’s 25-21 set win. K-State and the Bluejays were level, 11-11, but the Cats were unable to tie the score again. Mutiri recorded five kills in the set while Zumach turned in three. K-State hit .286 to Creighton’s .238 in the third game. Flowers tallied two of her team-best three blocks in frame.
Creighton picked up 11 team blocks on the night while K-State managed just three. CU held a 6-1 edge in service aces.
K-State officially begins its 2018 campaign on August 24 at the Hawaiian Airlines Rainbow Wahine Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii. There, the Cats will face off with No. 11 UCLA, Gonzaga and host Hawaii over three days.
