PROVO — Friday night in the Smith Fieldhouse was supposed to be about celebrating a four-woman senior class of BYU women’s volleyball that includes the Cougars’ all-time assist leader in the rally scoring era in Whitney Bower.
But Kansas tried to make the matchup of two of the top-three teams in the Big 12 all about the visitors, as top-25 opponents tend to do.
Reagan Cooper poured in 25 kills, and Ayah Elnady added 18 kills as the 17th-ranked Jayhawks stunned No. 13 BYU 23-25, 25-20, 25-23, 25-22 in front of a sold-out crowd of 4,412 fans at the Smith Fieldhouse.
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On a night dedicated to the Cougars’ four seniors of Bower, Whitney McEwan-Llarenas, Aria McComber and Kamaile Hiapo, BYU was led by another massive performance by junior Erin Livingston, who had 21 kills and six digs.
Bower dished out 48 assists with nine digs and three blocks, and Mia Lee and McEwan-Llarenas each added 11 kills and four blocks for the Cougars, who got 12 digs and four assists from Hiapo and nine digs and five assists from McComber.
But it was Cooper, Elnady and an attack directed by Camryn Turner (49 assists) that snapped BYU’s four-match winning streak and handed the Cougars a fifth loss in conference play — the most since 2011, and as many as the past four seasons, combined.
Welcome to the Big 12, where four teams are ranked in the latest AVCA coaches top 25 and three more (Kansas State, Iowa State and TCU) are receiving votes.
“These are the matches you want to be in at the end of the year; they mean something, and we’re all fighting for seeding and for the tournament,” BYU coach Heather Olmstead said. “We’re just trying to control what we can control and play the best volleyball we can at the end of the year. I thought we played OK, but I think, ultimately, Kansas played better than us. I thought they served in, and our passing was good enough; we just needed to score in some other spots on the net and get them more pressure. We’ll learn from that next week as we go on the road and play two matches.”
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Kansas women’s volleyball celebrates a point against BYU, Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, at the Smith Fieldhouse in Provo. (Photo: BYU Photo)
The loss could have costly implications on the Cougars’ NCAA Tournament hopes as both teams battled for a top-16 seed that would allow them to host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
But that’s also part of a move to a Power Five conference, where these kinds of games — especially in the final weeks of the regular season — mean so much more down the stretch. For Kansas, the chance to improve their resume with top-25 road win is too much to pass up.
BYU hopes the match, even in a loss, represents a similar rallying cry with the postseason so near.
“It definitely exposes your weaknesses, because they are such a good team. They came out firing on all cylinders,” Bower said. “If anything, it just makes us better moving forward. … Instead of playing someone that gives you more free balls, this team was hitting the 10-foot line. It’s definitely good preparation moving forward for the tournament.”
BYU’s attack was nearly flawless in the first set, hitting .424 and leading by as much as six before Kansas (20-5, 11-4 Big 12) rallied back with four blocks, tying the set three times in the final stages and taking the Jayhawks’ first lead at 23-22 on a kill by Elnady.
But Livingston, who had a match-high eight kills in the first set, put down back-to-back kills before BYU clinched the 25-23 lead with a 3-0 spurt capped by a block by Lee and Kate Prior.
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Kansas used the momentum of a close loss to jump out to a 12-6 advantage early when Elnady rose high over the net for a putback blast in the second set.
The Jayhawks laid down nine kills before their first error and held the Cougars to .143 en route to a 22-15 lead. McEwan-Llarenas capped a 4-0 spurt to pull BYU within four, but Kansas evened the match with a 25-20 win on a kill by Cooper.
After trailing by as much as 11-6 early in the third set, the Jayhawks tied up the match three times before Mykayla Myers won a joust at the net to give Kansas a 21-20 edge. Cooper then finished off her 10th kill of the set as Kansas polished off a 25-23 win for a 2-1 lead.
Elnady capped a 4-0 run to lift Kansas to an 18-15 advantage as the Jayhawks tried to close out the match in a potentially decisive fourth set.
The Cougars fought back, scoring four in a row to tie the match at 20-all before the Jayhawks closed out the match.
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BYU (22-6, 11-5 Big 12) wraps up the regular season with a pair of road matches at West Virginia and TCU before the NCAA selection draw Sunday, Nov. 26 at 4 p.m. MST on ESPN.
CHARLOTTE — The Panthers are getting one receiver back and losing another for Sunday’s game against the Chiefs.
Rookie wideout Jalen Coker, who has started in recent weeks, is inactive this week after a quadriceps injury suffered in practice Thursday.
The Panthers are getting veteran Adam Thielen back on the field this week. He’s been out since a hamstring injury in Week 3 on a long touchdown pass from Andy Dalton.
Johnson suffered a concussion in Germany and practiced this week.
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The Panthers brought wide receiver Dan Chisena and outside linebacker Kenny Dyson up from the practice squad for depth purposes.
Click here to view the full injury report | Depth Chart | Roster
The Liberty Flames (5-1) face the Kansas State Wildcats (4-1) on Sunday, November 24, 2024 at Virgin Islands Sport & Fitness Center. It begins at 8:00 PM ET on ESPN+.
Kansas State won at home over George Washington 83-71 last time out, and was led by David N’Guessan (17 PTS, 9 REB, 62.5 FG%) and Dug McDaniel (13 PTS, 5 AST, 2 STL, 45.45 FG%).
Liberty beat Louisiana 89-69 at home in its last game. Its top scorers were Kaden Metheny (20 PTS, 70 FG%, 4-6 from 3PT) and Taelon Peter (12 PTS, 62.5 FG%).
Prepare for this matchup with everything you need to know ahead of Sunday’s college hoops action.
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Kansas State Wildcats vs. Liberty Flames
Game day: Sunday, November 24, 2024
Game time: 8:00 PM ET
TV: ESPN+
Live stream: ESPN+ – Watch NOW
NCAA Basketball Odds and Betting Lines
Spread: Kansas State -2.5
Total: 134.5
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Devin Neal put Kansas on his back with four touchdowns on his Senior Day as the Jayhawks rolled past #16 Colorado 37-21 for their third straight ranked win. Kansas kept its bowl eligibility hopes alive heading into its final game of the season.
Neal rushed for 207 yards on 37 carries and added 80 yards through the air. Jalon Daniels completed 14 of his 21 passes for 189 yards, and the defense made enough plays to come out with a win.
First quarter
Kansas got on the board first, relying on Devin Neal. He got the Jayhawks going on the ground before taking a quick pass out of the backfield for 51 yards to the house. Neal got four touches on six plays as Kansas took an early 7-0 lead.
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The dream start continued for the Jayhawks as the defense forced a three-and-out. Kansas bottled up two screens before Shedeur Sanders missed Travis Hunter on third down, and Colorado punted.
The Jayhawks had to settle for three points on their next drive, but they controlled the clock over a 7:46 possession. Sevion Morrison got five carries while Daniels picked up 20 yards on a scramble. The drive eventually stalled, and Tabor Allen hit a 24-yard field goal.
Colorado got its offense going on its second drive. Sanders completed three passes as the Buffaloes drove into Kansas territory.
Second quarter
The Buffaloes drive quickly came to an end after Tommy Dunn stopped Dallan Hayden in the backfield for a loss on third down. The Jayhawks stopped the run again on fourth down, taking over at their 41 yard line.
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Kansas took complete control, going down the field with ease. Daniels converted a third down with his legs, and found Trevor Kardell for a 23-yard pickup to put the Jayhawks into the red zone. Neal got into the end zone from nine yards out to give Kansas a 17-0 lead with 9:02 to play in the first half.
Colorado broke into the scoring column in quick fashion. Sanders picked up 17 yards on a scramble, then hit Hunter on a screen, who took it 51 yards for a touchdown.
Morrison picked up a 15-yard run before Neal gained 47 yards on a wildcat carry to get the ball into the red zone. However, Kansas wasn’t able to get into the endzone, with Allen hitting a 23-yarder to extend the Jayhawks’ lead to 20-7.
The Buffaloes inched closer as Sanders looked impressive. After a low, late hit, Sanders completed passes of 16, 25, and 19 yards. Drelon Miller made a pair of tough catches, including the 19-yard touchdown to cut Kansas’ lead to 20-14.
Kansas saw a positive two-minute drill, but once again had to settle for a field goal. Daniels picked up 31 yards on a QB draw and Neal got the Jayhawks into the red zone. However, Daniels threw incompletions on second and third and goal from the two. Allen made a 25-yard field goal to give Kansas a 23-14 lead heading into the half.
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Third quarter
Colorado got a 43-yard kickoff return to open a touchdown drive to put the Buffaloes right back in it. Sanders connected with Hunter for another touchdown, this time he was left open for a 26-yard touchdown to make the score 23-21.
Kansas went on a 10-play drive, getting whatever it wanted on the ground. Neal continued to run with his head on fire, picking up multiple 10-plus yard carries. He scored his third touchdown of the day, eventually getting into the end zone after three carries from inside the five to give the Jayhawks some breathing room, 30-21.
The Jayhawks defense got a stop for the first time in a while to help Kansas continue to build momentum. Dean Miller made a pair of big plays, stuffing a jet touch pass and getting pressure to Sanders as Kansas sacked him for the first time. Colorado punted, giving the Jayhawks the ball at their own 30.
Kansas’ offense continued to get whatever it wanted. The Jayhawks dialed up a couple of nifty plays to their tight ends. Daniels made a play with his legs again, picking up 12 yards before hitting Neal out of the backfield for 15 as Kansas drove into the red zone at the end of the quarter.
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Fourth quarter
Neal put the team on his back, rushing five straight times to get in the end zone for his fourth touchdown. He picked up a fourth-down conversion before getting into the end zone from two yards out to give Kansas a 37-21 lead with 11:47 to play.
Colorado drove into Kansas territory, but the Jayhawks defense bore down and forced a turnover on downs. The drive took 5:25 off the clock as Kansas looked to close in on another ranked win.
Kansas ran out the remaining 6:22, relying on Neal to close out the game.
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