By Harper Mayfield | Sports Writer
Fresh off a 1-1 road trip to No. 9 Kansas, the No. 2 ranked Baylor volleyball team is set to face off with in-state rivals TCU in their first home contests of the season on Friday and Saturday.
Redshirt sophomore Lauren Harrison, a transfer from UNC Chapel Hill, starred in both matches against the Jayhawks, finishing with a total of 29 kills over two matches. Harrison attributed her success against Kansas to setter Callie Williams
“The defensive specialists and liberos did a good job of passing and servicing, so it started with them getting the passes and Callie just distributing the ball,” Harrison said.
Baylor was given the No. 2 spot in the AVCA poll this week, only behind in-conference opponent Texas, but Harrison said that couldn’t be further from their minds.
“We’re just gonna keep on head on what’s next, and that’s TCU,” Harrison said.
Head coach Ryan McGuyre said the team will need to “be a lot more intentional,” this weekend if they want to continue their efficient play from the second match with Kansas.
“Normally you play these preseason matches and that helps us work though some stuff,” McGuyre said. “We cut our errors way down. I think we were pretty high air the first day and low air the second day. That allows our block and other areas areas of our game to still score points in addition to the heavy arms that we have.”
Additionally, the Bears will look to extend their win streak over the Horned Frogs. Baylor has won each of their last six meetings with TCU, dating back to 2017. The two teams fared very differently last season with Baylor making an appearance in the NCAA tournament semifinal and TCU failing to qualify for the tournament at all.
“TCU has the advantage of seeing us play two matches, so they know our strengths, and they can focus on trying to slow those down,” McGuyre said.
This match with Baylor will be TCU’s first of the season, and the Frogs are hoping their young team hits the ground running. Key for the Frogs will be star junior Katie Clark, who Baylor could see in a few different spots on the floor.
“She’s been training on the middle and on the right side for the last two or three weeks, and … on the outside,” TCU head coach Jill Kramer said, according to an article by TCU360‘s Colin Post.
Both matches this weekend will start at 5 p.m. central. Fans looking to stream can do so on ESPNU, Big XII Now, and ESPN+. Those hoping to attend the game in person can arrive early to grab one of 700 available seats in the Ferrell Center, and students with a valid Baylor ID can attend the game free of charge.
