Volleyball faces toughest conference away match to date

As it nears the end of the first round of conference play, the volleyball team packs its bags to travel to Ames, Iowa, for one road match in between two at home. This is the first time all season the team will face a ranked conference opponent away from Manhattan, which sophomore opposite hitter Kathleen Ludwig said should not play too much of a role in the outcome of the match.

"We try not to let those factors affect us," Ludwig said. "Obviously, we know, and we know that we're going to need to play to the best of our ability. I think, as long as we do that, we'll be okay."

Tonight, K-State (9-9, 3-4 Big 12 Conference) plays No. 13 Iowa State University (11-4, 4-3) in Ames High School Gymnasium, a move from the usual venue due to the flooding that damaged the coliseum a couple months ago. The Cyclones hold a slight edge in the history of matchups between the teams, but K-State has claimed 22 of the 28 matches since the inception of the Big 12 Conference.

Recently, the Wildcats have had trouble grabbing a win against tough teams, but head coach Suzie Fritz said the losses only serve to make her team work harder.

"The one thing about not having success is that it makes you continue to really search and refine your priorities," Fritz said. "We continue to do that, hoping that we can find a formula, if you will, that works."

Iowa State has also had a tough schedule this season. With pre-conference matches against powerhouse teams like Florida and Kentucky, it entered the conference portion of the year with a strong resume. Since then, it has dropped three matches in the Big 12. The first two losses, to Nebraska and Texas, are nothing too surprising given the talent of those teams, but the last, to Kansas, speaks well for K-State, as the Wildcats beat the Jayhawks.

The Cyclones lost a solid player in junior outside hitter Rachel Hockaday to a knee injury early in the season, from which she has yet to recover. She has a number of notable awards, including two high honors from the Big 12 Conference, so Iowa State is suffering without her. Nonetheless, the team is still holding a national ranking and has slipped only four spots since the accident, so the Cyclones seem to be faring well despite their circumstances.

Part of the reason for their powerful rebound comes from senior outside hitter Victoria Henson. With her 4.2 kills per game and .306 hitting percentage, Henson sits at the top of hitters in the league, and her skills on the defensive side of the sport are also formidable, earning her praise from Fritz.

"She's good," Fritz said. "She hits with a tremendous amount of range."

When asked if her team could stop Henson, Fritz sounded prepared for the challenge and said the issue is larger than just one player.

"There's no reason you can't," she said. "The thing about Henson is she has a lot of talent around her as well, and so just stopping Henson isn't enough to beat Iowa State. It'll take more than that."

The All-American libero for Iowa State, senior Ashley Mass, is finding herself two spots below K-State's senior libero, Lauren Mathewson, in the conference's ranking of total digs per game. Mathewson is 69 digs away from claiming second in career digs at K-State.

With the turmoil lately in team focus and consistency, Fritz said her team was working to find a center and identity that could weather the season.

"We continue to remain optimistic that we can play better," Fritz said. "I think we've tried to stress being more resilient. I think we've tried to stress trying to get our fight back a little bit."

First serve is set for 7 p.m. Fans not attending the match can tune into the televised broadcast on Metro Sports or listen on the radio from KMAN 1350.