By Jeffrey Cohen | Sports Writer
The last time the Bears lost four consecutive matches was in November 2015.
Success and consistency have been the standard for Baylor volleyball under head coach Ryan McGuyre, but coming off a three-match losing streak that included back-to-back sweeps, the Bears were in search of a way back to the win column.
No. 20 Baylor (10-6, 5-3 Big 12) found it Wednesday, defeating Kansas State (10-5, 3-4 Big 12) 25-23, 17-25, 25-22, 28-26 to end the program’s sixth three-match losing streak in 11 seasons under McGuyre.
The first set started close, with both sides tied at 10. The Wildcats won nine of the next 13 points to take the lead. The Bears invigorated the Ferrell Center crowd, storming back to tie the set at 23 and win 25-23. Freshman outside hitter Bailey Warren and graduate middle blocker Manuela Bibinbe led the charge with five kills.
That was the first set Baylor won since the fourth set of a 3-2 loss to No. 15 Kansas on Oct. 3. They came into Wednesday night having been swept in back-to-back matches by No. 7 Arizona State and Arizona.
“It was good to get the win because they’re hard to come by,” McGuyre said. “We had so many due sets on the Arizona trip … we played two matches and lost by six points total.”
Kansas State jumped out to a 12-6 lead behind a six-point run. Outside hitter Aniya Clinton helped the Wildcats pull ahead with a kill and a service ace. Clinton finished the set with three kills and an ace as Kansas State held on to take the second set 25-17.
“I didn’t like how we played the second set,” McGuyre said. “It turned into a battle the rest of the way.”
The third set remained tight throughout. Neither squad led by multiple points until the Bears secured a 22-20 lead on a Warren kill. Warren made a miraculous save, crashing into the media tables about 20 feet behind the baseline to cap off a 5-2 run that gave Baylor a 2-1 lead.
“I knew what I had to do to get that point,” Warren said. “[It’s] just moving forward and knowing that we have a whole other set to play, and we still have a game to win.”
The fourth set was neck-and-neck the whole way, with the largest lead reaching three points. Freshman outside hitter Ksenia Rakhmanchik sent the home fans into a frenzy with two straight kills in extra points to secure the Bears’ first win since Oct. 1 and keep them from suffering their first four-match skid since November 2015.
Bibinbe shined against Kansas State, tallying season-highs with 21 kills and a .400 hitting percentage. She also paired that with six blocks, tied for the match lead with graduate middle blocker Gabrielle Essix.
“Manu was great ‘cuz she was in it from the start,” McGuyre said. “She had the right kind of growl on her face to come play volleyball today, and she maintained it the whole time.”
The Bears held their own at the net, out-blocking the Wildcats 12-9. The 12 blocks are tied for their third-best mark of the season.
“We talked a little bit about getting back to the game plan, because I feel like that’s where we fell short in Arizona,” Bibinbe said. “We adjusted pretty well because we knew what was coming at us. The coaches were pretty good at reminding us of what to do on the court.”
The Bears return to action against Cincinnati at 7 p.m. Friday at the Ferrell Center.
