Husky volleyball team stops Kansas, advances in NCAAs
Published 11:15 pm Friday, December 13, 2013
LOS ANGELES — Washington used aggressive serving, a strong block and a balanced offense to defeat 14th-seeded Kansas in straight sets and move into the NCAA volleyball tournament quarterfinals.
The Huskies beat the Jayhawks the 25-18, 25-13, 26-24 and now are one victory away from returning to the Final Four for the first time since 2006. UW heads into the regional finals for the seventh time in coach Jim McLaughlin’s 13 seasons. The Huskies next play at 8:30 p.m. today in a match that will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
Washington used big runs early in the first two sets to take commanding leads and take the 2-0 edge into intermission. After the break, the Jayhawks (25-8) fought back, as the Big 12 runners-up held a three-point lead on a couple occasions. But the Huskies retook the lead late and closed it out on two straight Melanie Wade kills.
“(Kansas) can do some things, they run a unique offense, they’re well-coached,” McLaughlin said. “We got on them early, and just did a nice job defensively pressuring them. We served the ball real well and that was a good deal for us. They’re a better team I think than they showed tonight.”
