🏐 #23 Houston Defeats Shockers

WICHITA, Kan. — Wichita State's three-match winning streak was snapped on Sunday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena, as #23 Houston bested the Shockers 25-11, 25-22, 25-20.

The Shockers (14-12, 9-6) fell into a quick hole early in the first set and never recovered. Houston (25-2, 16-0) surged to a 13-6 lead out out of the blocks, forcing a Wichita State timeout. The Cougars struck for eight of nine points in the middle stages of the set, and the Shockers would get no closer than seven the rest of the way. Five different Cougars had multiple kills as Houston hit .519 for the set.

WSU got off to a much better start in the second frame, leading 6-5 on a kill from Natalie Foster, who led the Shockers with 14 kills and hit .684 for the match. The Cougars embarked on an 8-2 run to take a lead they would not relinquish, though the Shockers did later pull back to with two points four times in the set (19-17, 22-20, 23-21, 24-22). An Abbie Jackson kill clinched the set for Houston, one of a match-high 15 terminations on the day for Jackson.

The Shockers did not go quietly in the third set, trailing by six at the 15-point media timeout before slicing the Houston lead down to one at 18-17. The Cougars scored three of the next four points out of the timeout to reestablish control, and nailed down the match with three consecutive points.

Kayce Litzau had 22 assists and a team-high nine digs, while Hailey Plugge dished out six assists of her own after entering the match in the third set. After Foster's 14 kills, Brylee Kelly and Sophia Rohling each notched six.

The Shockers hit the road to battle their travel partner Tulsa on Wednesday evening. First serve is scheduled for 6:00 pm.Print Friendly Version