Wildcats Set for Nationally Televised Dillons Sunflower Showdown

MANHATTAN, Kan. – The season’s first version of the Dillons Sunflower Showdown between Okay-State and 14^th-ranked Kansas is ready for a nationwide broadcast on ESPNU Friday evening, because the 131^st installment of the in-state rivalry is scheduled for 8 p.m. CT at Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence.

Okay-State (10-6, 3-5 Big 12) seems to be to bounce again after dropping a pair of Top 25 matches at Baylor and TCU, whereas No. 14 KU (15-7, 6-2 Big 12) enters the match having gained six of its final seven matches. The Jayhawks have gained 9 of the final 10 conferences within the sequence.

MATCH #17

Okay-STATE (10-6, 3-5 BIG 12) at #14 KU (15-7, 6-2 BIG 12)
Friday, October 24 // 8 PM CT // Allen Fieldhouse (Lawrence, Kan.)
Dillons Sunflower Showdown
Live Stats // ESPNU // Tickets

FOLLOW THE CATS

• The Dillons Sunflower Showdown will air on ESPNU, marking the Wildcats’ first nationally televised sport of the season.
• Live stat hyperlinks will be discovered on the Okay-State volleyball schedule web page on kstatesports.com, whereas followers can discover reside sport updates all season lengthy on the Wildcats social media pages (@OkayStateVB).
• Single-match tickets for all dwelling matches will be bought by contacting the Okay-State Athletics Ticket Office at (800) 221-CATS, visiting kstatesports.com/tickets or on the Morgan Family Arena ticket sales space.

 
A FRIDAY WIN WOULD…

• Move Okay-State to 2-3 over its final 5 matches.
• Hand the Wildcats their second victory over a Top 25 crew, whereas it might be the primary in Big 12 play.
• Mark the eighth win over a ranked opponent underneath head coach Jason Mansfield. Okay-State presently is 7-14 in opposition to Top 25 groups within the Mansfield period.
• Snap KU’s four-match profitable streak.
• Mark the primary victory over the Jayhawks since 2020, ending an eight-match dropping skid.

 
Okay-STATE AT A GLANCE

• Okay-State (10-6, 3-5) seems to be to leap again into the win column after struggling a pair of difficult four-set Top 25 highway matches at Baylor and TCU.
• Shaylee Myers continues to be probably the most dominant gamers within the Big 12 convention and NCAA, because the senior is eighth within the nation in kills per set (4.85) and ninth in factors per set (5.31). The Big 12 chief in kills per set and two-time Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week has turned in seven matches with 20 or extra kills, together with a program report 34 on October 1 at West Virginia.
• With 10 matches left of the common season, 5 are in opposition to groups featured within the newest AVCA standings together with Iowa State, which is receiving votes.
• Senior setter Ava LeGrand has registered a team-leading eight double-doubles on the 12 months, together with seven within the final 9 matches.
• The Wildcats are 7-16 in opposition to Top 25 opponents within the Mansfield period.
• On the highway, Okay-State strikes to 5-3 that features a 3-3 mark as a real highway crew.
• This season, Okay-State holds a 6-4 edge in matches that exceed three units, with all six victories coming in five-set matches.

 
SCOUTING #14 KANSAS

• The Jayhawks (15-7, 6-2 Big 12) enter Friday’s contest with a five-match win streak, after sweeping No. 10 TCU final evening, 28-26, 25-16, 25-22.
• KU is in its first season underneath head coach Matt Ulmer, who beforehand served as the top coach at Oregon (2017-24) the place he compiled a 166-77 total report (.683).
• In 2013, Ulmer grew to become youngest coach in volleyball historical past to win a nationwide championship when he guided Long Beach State to a seashore volleyball title.
• As a crew, KU ranks first in whole assists (1,047), kills (1,127), digs (1,203), and blocks (223.0). The Jayhawks additionally sit third within the league in opponent hitting share (.172), whereas their 223 blocks rank second within the nation.
• At the web, Reese Ptacek ranks among the many nation’s three gamers in whole blocks, rating first within the league and 18^th total with 97 whole blocks. She is adopted by Aurora Papac (93) and Jovana Zelenovic (86), who rank third and seventh within the Big 12, respectively.
• Libero Ryan White has anchored a again row with 331 whole digs, averaging 3.89 digs/set, rating second and fifth within the Big 12 within the classes.
• Offensively, 5 gamers are averaging over 2.30 kills per set, led by senior Rhian Swanson with 3.10 kills/set, whereas freshman Jovana Zelenovic has tallied a team-high 252 whole kills.
• Cristin Cline and Katie Dalton have every break up time because the Jayhawks main setter. Dalton most lately dished out a career-high 55 assists in a four-set victory over Iowa State (Oct. 10).

 
INSIDE THE SERIES

• Okay-State leads the all-time sequence, 67-62-1, relationship again to 1974.
• KU has gained the final eight within the sequence total, going again to 2020, and has been ranked within the AVCA Top 25 within the final 4 matchups.
• Okay-State final gained on October 30, 2020, a five-set victory in Lawrence.
• The Cats are 31-22 on the highway within the sequence however have dropped eight of the final 10 to the Jayhawks in Lawrence.
• KU has taken 11 of the final 15 conferences total.

 
Last 5 Matches
11/2/22: Kansas 3, Kansas State 0
11/3/23: Kansas 3, Kansas State 2
11/4/23: Kansas 3, Kansas State 0
10/17/24: Kansas 3, Kansas State 2
11/24/24: Kansas 3, Kansas State 1
 
LAST TIME OUT

• TCU picked up a four-set win over Okay-State – 26-24, 25-23, 32-34, 25-17.
• Okay-State hit .134 (57 kills, 29 errors, 209 swings) with two Wildcats reaching double-digit kills: Myers (21), Clinton (18)
• LeGrand produced her eighth double-double of the season, allotting 40 assists with 19 digs.
• Defensively, Sims produced a team-best 20 digs, whereas Schmidt led with a match-high six blocks (1 solo, 5 assists) and LeGrand had 4 block assists.
• Okay-State out-blocked TCU, 9.0-7.0.
• Okay-State leads the all-time sequence 15-11, whereas TCU holds a 7-5 edge in matches performed in Fort Worth.
• Set 3 was the best scoring set for Okay-State since September 27, 2024 vs. UCF, the place the Wildcats scored 30 factors to win the set.

 
VS. RANKED OPPONENTS

• Okay-State is 1-3 in opposition to groups ranked within the AVCA Coaches Top 25 Poll with a victory in opposition to then-No. 25 North Carolina, whereas they’re 1-1 in opposition to groups receiving votes.
• Myers is averaging a formidable 4.63 kills per set in opposition to ranked groups adopted by Clinton (3.44).
• Overall, Okay-State boasts a 7-16 mark in opposition to Top 25 opponents underneath Mansfield.
• In 2023, Okay-State set a program report for Top 25 wins in a single season, that included 12 consecutive set wins with sweeps over #8 BYU (twice) and #3 Texas.
• Okay-State was final ranked in 2020.

 
MAKE IT GRAND

• In her first full season as Okay-State’s main setter, senior Ava LeGrand third the Big 12 with 10.16 assists per set and sixth in whole assists with 620.
• LeGrand is 110 assists wanting her 1,000^th profession help.
• This season, the senior from Papillion, Nebraska, has set single-match profession finest in assists (59) at West Virginia (Oct. 1).
• LeGrand’s 59 assists in opposition to WVU is the second-most compiled in a single match this season by a Big 12 participant.
• She has additionally turned in eight double-doubles this season and now has 11 in her profession.

 
AIR JORDYN

• Middle blocker Jordyn Williams continues to anchor the Okay-State protection on the web, rating within the Big 12’s top-20 in blocks per set (0.96).
• The senior tallied a season-best seven blocks and a career-high .667 hitting share within the match in opposition to Texas Tech (Oct. 10).
• Her seven blocks in opposition to TTU are probably the most by a Okay-State participant this season, whereas she is fourth within the Big 12 in total hitting share (.362).

 
DIGGY SIMS

• A libero and defensive specialist from Frisco, Texas, Symone Sims, has anchored the again row this season because the Cats’ beginning libero.
• Sims is third within the Big 12 in digs per set at a 3.90 mark, whereas her 238 whole digs stand sixth within the league.
• She posted a career-high 25 digs in opposition to Iowa State (Oct. 8) and at Baylor (Oct. 15)
• Totaling six matches on the 12 months with 20 or extra digs, she is one 20-dig match shy of becoming a member of this system’s top-10 leaderboard with whole 20-dig matches in a single season.

 
MYERS MAYHEM

• Senior Shaylee Myers’ has recorded double-digit kills in all however one match this season, reaching the 20-kill mark in six and features a record-breaking 34 kills in opposition to West Virginia (Oct. 1).
• Myers has earned the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week award twice this season (Sept. 23, Oct. 7).
• She grew to become the primary participant within the rally-scoring period to report 34 kills in a single match and simply the fourth in program historical past to achieve the milestone.
• Her 34 kills are probably the most kills by any Big 12 participant in a match this season.
• Myers is just the second participant at school historical past to put up 39.5 or extra factors in a match, setting a brand new rally-scoring period report.
• Tied this system report for service aces in a five-set match, turning into the fifth participant within the rally-scoring period to notch 5 aces.
• With her 21 kills at TCU, Myers grew to become the ninth Wildcat to show in seven or extra 20-kill matches in a single season.

 
ANIYA-LATOR

• Clinton, who was chosen to the 2025 Preseason All-Big 12 Volleyball Team, has recorded double digit kills in 10 matches in 2025 whereas reaching the 20-kill mark in three matches this season.
• She matched a career-best 25 kills twice this season at West Virginia (Oct. 1) and at Cincinnati (Oct. 3).
• A product of Midland, Texas, Clinton is second on the crew with 233 kills (3.82 per set) whereas hitting at a .178 effectivity with 2.31 digs/ set and 0.43 blocks/ set with 14 service aces.
• The 6-foot-2 outdoors hitter/ reverse was one among 18 Big 12 gamers to earn a spot on the convention’s preseason squad.
• In 2023, Clinton was named to the All-Big 12 Rookie Team and earned a number of Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors.

 
DOUBLE DOWN

• Ava LeGrand, Aniya Clinton and Shaylee Myers have every recorded a double-double this season for Okay-State, with all three registering double-doubles at Cincinnati.
• LeGrand leads the way in which with eight in 2025, adopted by Clinton with 4 and Myers has one.
• The trio mix for 17 double-doubles of their respective careers.

 
SENIOR STACKED

• Okay-State’s 4 seniors are main the crew in almost each main statistical class.
• Myers paces the offense with 296 whole kills, 4.85 kills per set, 324.0 factors, and 5.31 factors per set.
• LeGrand leads the crew and is third within the league with 10.16 assists per set (620 whole), in addition to service aces (18).
• Schmidt leads the way in which in blocks per set (1.24), whereas Jordyn Williams leads total in whole blocks (54.0) and hitting share (.362).

 
SHINING IN PURPLE

• Five of Okay-State’s six true freshman made their collegiate debuts in the course of the Wildcats’ non-conference schedule.
• Defensive specialist/libero Caleigh Ponn has appeared in all however three units in her true freshman season, whereas center blocker Cadence Lundgren has performed in 36 of 61.
• Ponn is fourth on the crew in whole blocks (114) and blocks per set (1.97), whereas she has notched 10 or extra digs in 4 matches this season.
• Lundgren has made seven match begins and totaled 29.0 blocks this season (0.82 blocks/set), that features 4 solo blocks.
• Redshirt freshman Emerson Van Lannen is second on the crew in service aces (17), recording a season-high three in three matches this season (Last: at #20 Baylor, Oct. 15.)

 
CATS VS. THE BIG 12

• Okay-State is ninth within the league standings with a 3-5 convention report, that features a 2-2 report when taking part in on the highway.
• In Big 12 matches, the Cats’ offense is led by Myers, who’s second within the league in whole kills (157) and whole factors (169.0). Myers is fourth in kills per set (4.76) and factors per set (5.12) in convention matches solely.
• Schmidt paves the way in which on the web, tallying 1.38 blocks/set.
• Williams has totaled 29 in Big 12 matches, which features a team-leading 5 solo blocks. She additionally leads with a .364 hitting share in league video games.
• Offensively, the Wildcats are the Big 12 leaders in whole kills in convention matches (452), whereas they’re third within the league in kills per set (13.70).
• The Cats 286-250 all-time in Big 12 play, together with a 21-23 report underneath Mansfield, whereas this system boasts an total convention report of 339-385.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• The Wildcats are undefeated when main in kills (10-0) and assault share (7-0), and are 9-0 when hitting above .200 with 4 victories hitting north of .300.
• Additionally, the Cats are 6-1 once they have restricted their opponents to a hitting effectivity underneath .200. In 4 of these wins, opponents hit underneath .100.
• Conversely, Okay-State is 4-5 when opponents put up a crew effectivity above .200.
• Okay-State has out-blocked opponents in eight matches (6-2), totaling a season-high 10 in 4 matches (final: vs. Texas Tech, October 10).
• This season, the Wildcats have recorded a season-high 78 digs in opposition to Iowa State (Oct. 8) with a 7-1 report when main in digs.
• In the month of October, Okay-State is 3-3, whereas the Wildcats 6-2 in Friday matches.

 
YEAR THREE OF THE MANSFIELD ERA

• Jason Mansfield, who was appointed because the ninth head coach on Dec. 27, 2022, enters his third season on the helm of the Kansas State volleyball program.
• In 12 months one, Okay-State achieved a record-breaking 5 top-25 wins with victories over No. 3 Texas, No. 8 BYU (twice), No. 18 Baylor, and No. 25 Iowa State.
• Okay-State handed Texas – the 2022 and 2023 NCAA National Champion – its solely loss in convention play in its remaining season within the Big 12.
• Overall, Okay-State boasts a 7-16 mark in opposition to Top 25 opponents underneath Mansfield.

 
AROUND THE BIG 12

• Arizona State (16-2) stays atop of the league standings with an ideal 6-0 mark in Big 12 matches, whereas Colorado (16-3) and TCU (16-3) have every recorded only one loss.
• Six faculties rank within the newest AVCA Coaches Top 25 Poll – No. 6 Arizona State, No. 10 TCU, No. 14 Kansas, No. 17 BYU, No. 19 Baylor, and No. 24 Colorado – whereas Iowa State is receiving votes.
• TCU’s Evan Hendrix (offensive), Arizona State’s Colby Neal (defensive), and BYU’s Suli Davis (rookie) have been named the Big 12 Volleyball Players of the Week for the fourth week of Conference play.