TicketsLAWRENCE, Kan. – The Cincinnati volleyball team fell 3-0 (25-23, 25-18, 28-26) Sunday to No. 15 Kansas at Horejsi Family Volleyball Arena.
Sydney Nolan paced the Bearcats’ offense with 18 kills, Ligia Williams added nine kills on a .562 clip and Kate Lijic distributed 25 assists. Ava Ledebuhr and Viktoria Ninova held down the back line, with Ledebuhr tallying 12 digs and Ninova 11.
The Jayhawks outhit the Bearcats, .331 (54 kills) to .244 (43 kills). Kansas also led in digs (54-50) and blocks (8.0-6.0).
Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year Taylor Stanley led Kansas with 19 kills (.341), and Grace Nelson reached double-digit kills as well with 12. Nelson also tallied 15 digs.
Back-to-back aces by the Jayhawks put them ahead 10-5 in the opening set. Cincinnati kept battling, as a Kansas error made it 16-13 and a 4-0 run, fueled by three Nolan kills, brought the Bearcats within two at 20-22. Cincinnati trailed 24-21 but saved two set points before falling 25-23 on a service error.
The second set was tightly contested early. A Williams kill gave Cincinnati a narrow 6-5 advantage, but a 5-1 answer from Kansas flipped momentum, and the Jayhawks took leads of 10-7 and 20-13. The Bearcats didn’t go away easily, as an Andrea Simovski ace cut the deficit to 24-18, but a Nelson kill sealed the set for Kansas.
Cincinnati jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the third, causing a Kansas timeout. The Jayhawks returned to the floor and evened it at 4-4. Both teams traded blows, and a trio of kills from Cincinnati evened it at 14-14. A Kansas ace made it 21-17 before a Nolan kill sparked a four-point run to tie the score at 21-21. Kansas reached set point at 24-22 on a Logan Bell ace, but Cincinnati saved two set points before taking the lead at 25-24 and 26-25. The Jayhawks closed out the set and match with three consecutive points to win 28-26.
//UP NEXT
Cincinnati returns home to face UCF on Friday, Nov. 13, at 6:30 p.m. at Fifth Third Arena. This is the second matchup between the Knights and Bearcats this season. The teams met in Orlando on Oct. 9, where Cincinnati swept UCF 3-0 (25-22, 31-29, 25-18).
// GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY
Single-match tickets are $15 for courtside seating, based on availability, and $10 for general admission. Group general admission tickets are available for $5. Family 4-Packs are also available for all weekend matches (Friday through Sunday), which include four tickets and a $20 concession voucher.
To secure your spots for the upcoming season, click HERE to purchase your tickets online, or contact the Bearcats Ticket Office at 513-556-2287 today.