It’s a philosophy that’s taught to athlete’s around the world: a team can’t revolve around one player.

Outside hitter Rita Liliom has been the face of the Wildcat volleyball team this season. Through the team’s first 16 matches, Liliom averaged 4.24 kills per game and a .204 hitting percentage.

However, in the No. 16 Wildcats’ match against Missouri (8-8, 2-4 Big 12 Conference) on Wednesday night, Liliom suffered something that she rarely experiences: a bad night. She maintained her kill average, tallying 15 in four games, but a night plagued with errors resulted in a .038 hitting percentage for the normally dominant senior.

While Liliom’s off-night didn’t make K-State’s task any easier, the Wildcats (15-3, 5-2 Big 12) were still able to come through in a highly contested 3-1 win over the Tigers in Ahearn Field House. The match was arguably the most well-balanced of the season for K-State, as five players tallied double-digit kills - a feat that hadn’t been accomplished by the Wildcats this season.

Senior outside hitter Jenny Jantsch, who had 10 kills on the night, said having a balanced attack helps to keep opponents off-guard.

“[Being balanced] is great. It keeps other teams guessing,” said Jantsch. “You know, we’re not having to ride one player the whole time. When you have a lot of players getting 10 kills or more, it makes it a lot harder to defend, because you never know who it’s going to go to.”

The opening game was a see-saw battle, as it featured 13 ties and five lead changes. Both teams had trouble separating themselves, as the lead never exceeded three for either squad until Missouri took a 16-12 advantage. However, K-State responded, using a 4-0 run to even the score at 16-16. The teams scored back and forth several times until the Wildcats broke the pattern, scoring twice in a row to take a 23-22 lead. However, the Tigers reeled off three straight points to take the opener, 25-23.

K-State came out swinging in the second game, jumping out to an early 7-3 lead, but the Tigers battled back to knot the score up at 11-11. The early four-point lead was the game’s largest margin until the Wildcats used a late 3-0 run to push the score to 24-19. Missouri wouldn’t go quietly, as they trimmed the lead to two, but K-State staved off the comeback and won the game, 25-22.

After escaping with a win in the second game, the Wildcats caught fire in the third. They jumped out to an 11-4 lead, and it appeared they would bury the Tigers early. However, after falling behind 13-19, Missouri used a 10-5 run to cut K-State’s lead - which reached nine points midway through the match - to one. With the Wildcats clinging to a 24-23 lead, senior middle blocker Megan Farr - who contributed 11 kills - blocked a Tiger attack to secure the 25-23 win.

In the match’s fourth and final game, the Wildcats again started hot, opening with a 7-2 lead. But as they had all night, Missouri clawed back, tying the score at 11-11. K-State answered with a 9-4 run to take a late 20-15 lead, but they had trouble finishing off the Tigers. After a 7-4 Tiger run cut the Wildcats’ lead to 24-22, a Missouri error clinched the match for K-State.

After the match, head coach Suzie Fritz said the Wildcats could have played better, but they did enough to get the job done.

“[Tonight was] not our best match, by far,” Fritz said. “We still played consistently well enough in the end. I just wish we could put longer stretches of good play together.”

Jantsch echoed her coaches thoughts, saying the team was able to come through when it mattered most.

“We’ve kind of had a tendency to start off slow this year,” she said. “But we definitely found a way to finish it, and that’s what matters.”

The double-digit mark was also reached by senior outside hitter Nataly Korobkova, and junior middle blocker Kelsey Chipman, who had 16 and 11 kills, respectively. Missouri was led by Catie Wilson, who tallied 12 kills on the night. Amanda Hantouli and Weiwen Wang each added 10 for the Tigers.

The Wildcats will resume play when they travel to Norman, Okla. to take on the Oklahoma Sooners at McCasland Field House. Action is set to begin at 7 p.m.

Comments

1 comments

Blueballs

Thu Oct 9 2008 07:30

Meagan Farr Rocks!!!

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