From K-State Athletics
K-State had three players turn in double-doubles with four in double-figure kills, but Texas Tech rallied from a 2-1 deficit to defeat the Wildcats in five sets Wednesday night, 25-27, 25-20, 19-25, 25-21, 15-11, at United Supermarkets Arena.
K-State (10-6, 0-5 Big 12) took two of the first three sets, but Texas Tech (15-3, 4-0 Big 12) won the final two games and used a six-point spurt in the final set to win its ninth match in a row and stay undefeated at home and in league play. The Wildcats suffered their fifth consecutive defeat.
Redshirt senior outside hitter Kylee Zumach led the Cats in kills with 16 to go with a career-best 19 digs. Freshman opposite Gloria Mutiri had her second double-double of her career with 12 kills and 11 digs and redshirt junior setter Sarah Dixon added 46 assists to go with 12 digs
Senior Macy Flowers posted a career-high 10 block assists in helping the Wildcats to 15.0 team blocks, a single-match high on the year. Mutiri had a season-best six blocks while redshirt sophomore Peyton Williams and Zumach each added five blocks.
Williams had 11 kills and senior Alyssa Schultejans contributed 10 to round out the Cats in double-digits.
As a team, K-State recorded a season-high 91 digs, led by libero Devan Fairfield with a career-best 26 on the night. Senior Reilly Killeen added 10, as five Wildcats had at least 10 digs in the match.
K-State held a five-point lead in Set 1, 23-18, before Texas Tech closed the gap with six consecutive points to reach set point. The Cats fended off two set points before senior Zsofia Gyimes went back to serve and closed Set 1 by tallying back-to-back aces. Gyimes had three aces in the opening set and finished with four on the night, equaling her career high.
After opening the second set by scoring four straight points, the Cats saw Texas Tech go on a 9-1 run, including a string of six straight points. K-State got as close as two at 22-20, but TTU closed with a 3-0 spurt to tie the match at a set apiece. The Red Raiders limited the Wildcats to just nine kills and a sub-.100 hitting percentage.
The Wildcats never trailed in the third set, claiming a 2-1 lead after a 25-19 set win. Zumach picked up five kills while Mutiri had four. It was K-State’s most productive set as it manufactured 18 kills and hit .279, the only set in which the Cats hit for a higher efficiency than the Red Raiders.
Texas Tech forced a fifth set after tallying 19 kills in Set 4. Tech’s Brooke Kanas recorded eight kills in the set while the Cats had just 10 as a team in the frame. K-State fought off three set points with three straight kills by Williams before falling, 25-21.
The Red Raiders held a 72-55 advantage in total kills while limiting K-State to a .174 team efficiency.
K-State gets its first bye on Saturday and next takes the court on Wednesday, October 10 vs. Iowa State at Ahearn Field House. First serve against the Cyclones is set for 7 p.m.
