No. 11 Kansas volleyball edged at No. 22 Iowa State, 3-1

AMES, Iowa – No. 11 Kansas volleyball fell in four sets to No. 22 Iowa State on Saturday night at Hilton Coliseum, 3-1 (25-18, 25-19, 19-25, 25-23).

The seventh top-25 matchup of the season for the Jayhawks (19-4, 8-2 Big 12) became the first loss against the Cyclones since October 2014, snapping a six-match series winning streak. Kansas falls to 4-3 against ranked opponents this season.

Just like KU’s five-set comeback win over ISU in Lawrence on Sept. 27, the Jayhawks fell behind by two sets against the Cyclones on Saturday. But despite a strong effort in the third and fourth sets, including eight kills off the bench from senior middle blocker Kayla Cheadle, the Jayhawks’ comeback came up short.  

“It was just a really slow start. When you play a high-level team on the road you can’t dig an 0-2 deficit and expect to win,” Kansas head coach Ray Bechard said. “We fought back in a lot of ways but Iowa State made the plays at the end to earn the win.”

Sophomore outside hitter Jada Burse led the Jayhawks with 12 kills, while senior right-side hitter Kelsie Payne notched her fifth double-double of the season with 11 kills and 15 digs.

Iowa State (16-4, 7-3) was led by three players with double-figure kills, including middle blocker Samara West’s 19 kills on a .471 hitting percentage. Outside hitter Jess Schaben recorded 18 kills with a match-high 19 digs and middle blocker Alexis Conaway notched 16 kills.

UP NEXT
Kansas has a mid-week bye before returning to action on Saturday, Nov. 4 at TCU. First serve from Fort Worth, Texas, is scheduled for 2 p.m.

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