MATCH #27: No. 3 TEXAS (23-3, 18-1 Big 12) vs. Kansas State (22-7, 14-5 Big 12)
When: Saturday, Nov. 24 at 6:30 p.m. Central
Where: Austin, Texas (Gregory Gymnasium; 4,000 capacity)
SERIES INFO
All-Time Series Record: Texas leads Kansas State, 18-7 (9-3 home, 1-0 neutral, 8-4 away)
Last Meeting: Oct. 6, 2007 -- Texas won, 3-2 (30-26, 25-30, 30-27, 22-30, 15-9) in Manhattan
Last Kansas State Victory: Oct. 15, 2003 -- Kansas State won, 3-2 (30-19, 24-30, 30-20, 25-30,14-16) in Manhattan
Current Streak: Texas has won the last eight meetings.
Tickets
Purchase at TexasBoxOffice.com; by calling 800-982-BEVO or 512-471-3333; in person at any Texas Box Office outlet, including Austin-area H-E-B stores and the UT Athletics Ticket Office in Bellmont Hall (Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Central); and in person one hour prior to game time at the Gregory Gymnasium box office.
Promotions
· Orange Santa: With the donation of a new toy, receive one FREE general admission ticket.
· $4 general admission
HEADLINES
· Texas was ranked No. 3 in the CSTV/AVCA poll, released Monday, Nov. 19, holding that position for the fourth straight week ... The Longhorns ranking is their highest ranking since Sept. 17, 1996 when Texas was ranked No. 3 ... UT has been ranked in the top seven every week this season ... Texas opened the season ranked No. 4 in the preseason poll, equaling its best preseason ranking in program history (1998).
· The Longhorns are currently tied atop the Big 12 Conference with No. 2 Nebraska and are vying for a co-championship ... A Texas victory in its season finale against No. 12 Kansas State will net the Longhorns a share of the conference title ... Nebraska earns the conference' automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by virtue of a points scored vs. points allowed formula ... UT outscored NU in its victory 90-67, while the Huskers outscored the Horns, 90-66 in their win.
· The Longhorns extended their season-best winning streak to 19 matches with their 3-2 victory over Iowa State on Nov. 21 ... Five players tallied double-digit kill totals in the win and four players collected double-doubles ... Sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker paced UT in the win with 20 kills, 11 digs and five total blocks ... sophomore opposite hitter Ashley Engle recorded 18 kills, 11 digs, six blocks and four assists for the match ... the five-game win marked the second time Texas has been forced to five games in 2007, winning both contests.
· Sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker and freshman outside hitter Juliann Faucette paced UT with a pair of 14-kill performances in its 3-0 sweep of Baylor on Nov. 17 ... Faucette added 14 digs for her sixth kill/dig double-double of the season.
· In its 12 Big 12 Conference matches, Texas has been impressive, ranking near the top of virtually every league statistical category in conference play ... The Longhorns rank first in the league with 3.37 blocks p/g and .354 hitting percentage ... Texas' 17.90 kills p/g and 16.59 assists p/g rank second in league play.
· Individually, Juliann Faucette and Destinee Hooker rank second and third in the Big 12 in kills p/g with 4.78 and 4.65 respectively ... Faucette ranks third in the conference with 5.44 points p/g ... Hooker ranks second in points (5.64) and sixth in hitting percentage (.356) ... Senior setter Michelle Moriarty paces the conference with 14.94 assists p/g in league play and middle blockers Lauren Paolini and Brandy Magee rank first and third in hitting percentage at .460 and .408 ... sophomore opposite hitter Ashley Engle ranks eighth with 0.30 service aces per-game.
LAST TIME OUT VS. IOWA STATE (11/21/07)
Texas survived a two-game Iowa State rally and staved off an ISU rally in game five, 18-16 to knock off the Cyclones, 3-2 at the Hilton Coliseum. Five Longhorns tallied double-digit kill totals in the 30-19, 30-24, 24-30, 32-34, 18-16 victory ... Texas went up two games to none with ease took early control of the match, however, Iowa State stormed back after the break, winning two straight games before the Horns were able to shut the door on a solo block by sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker in game five ... Hooker paced the Longhorns with a team-high 20 kills and the sophomore added 11 digs and five total blocks ... sophomore opposite hitter Ashley Engle posted 18 kills on the night and chipped in 11 digs, six blocks and four assists, while freshman outside hitter Juliann Faucette and junior middle blocker Lauren Paolini registered 16 kills apiece.
LAST TIME AGAINST KANSAS STATE (10/6/07)
Despite dropping games two and four, Texas rallied to knock off No. 17 Kansas State, 3-2 (30-26, 25-30, 30-27, 22-30, 15-9) at Ahearn Fieldhouse on Oct. 6 ... sophomore outside hitter Destinee Hooker led the way for UT, hammering out 18 kills and posting eight digs and seven block assists ... freshman outside hitter Juliann Faucette connected for 15 kills on .290 hitting, while senior middle blocker Brandy Magee added 13 kills and nine total blocks and junior middle blocker Lauren Paolini totaled 11 kills on .611 hitting and registered nine total blocks ... senior setter Michelle Moriarty recorded 55 assists and 10 digs on the night, registering her second straight assist/dig double-double ... sophomore opposite hitter Ashley Engle added a season-high 10 digs against the Wildcats, while senior libero Alyson Jennings posted a team-high 11 digs ... the Longhorns out-blocked KSU on the night, 18.5-to-10.5 and out-hit the Wildcats .285-to-.196.
