Wednesday, October 30
Fort Worth, Texas
6:30 PM
TCU
vs
Colorado
Preview: vs. Colorado and Iowa State
10/29/2024 12:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Horned Frogs open three match homestand on Wednesday
FORT WORTH – Looking to bounce back at home, No. 18 TCU opens a three match homestand, welcoming Colorado and Iowa State to town on Wednesday, Oct. 30, and Friday, Nov. 1.
TCU NOTABLES
• The Frogs look to bounce back in front of their home crowd following a tough five-set loss at No. 23 Baylor.
• TCU boasts a 9-1 record at home this season, including five sweeps.
• After cracking the poll for the first time ever seven weeks ago, the Frogs are climbing the rankings, up to No. 18 in the AVCA/TARAFLEX Coaches' Poll this week.
• Melanie Parra ranks inside the top 10 in the country in five different offensive categories, including second nationally in points per set (6.06) and kills per set (5.25).
• Parra is the first player in Division I women's volleyball history to win back-to-back AVCA/GameChanger Player of the Week honors (Sept. 10 & 17).
• TCU volleyball has caught the nation's attention, earning the No. 14 spot in the NCAA Selection Committee's in-season ranking.
• The Frogs boast the No. 11 RPI in the country coming into the week, the second highest mark of any Big 12 team.
SCOUTING REPORT
Coming off a loss to No. 21 BYU, Colorado takes on its second straight ranked opponent in TCU on Wednesday night in Fort Worth. The Buffaloes are sitting at 10-11 on the season, including a 3-6 mark in their first season in the Big 12 Conference. They rank 10th in the league standings with wins over Texas Tech, UCF and Arizona. As a team, Colorado is averaging 11.9 kills per set, set by outside hitter Ana Burilovic. The sophomore paces the Buffaloes with 296 kills (3.57 per set). Setter Taylor Simpson has the offense clicking, dishing out 9.41 assists per set while the team hits at a .214 mark. Defensively, libero Sarah Morton leads the way with 3.21 digs per set, and middle blocker Cayla Payne ranks second in the conference with 97 rejections.
Iowa State comes into the week with a 9-10 overall record on the season. The Cyclones are coming off a pair of losses to No. 9 Kansas and Kansas State and have a matchup at No. 17 Baylor on Wednesday. Ranked ninth in the Big 12, ISU is 3-5 in Conference play with wins over Cincinnati, Texas Tech and WVU. The Cyclones' depth has been tested this year as they have battled injury. Offensively, six athletes have registered over 100 kills, led by Lilly Wachholz (187) and Maya Duckworth (168). On the defensive side, senior libero Brooke Stonestreet leads the team with 306 total digs, the fifth most in the Big 12, and the middle blocker duo of Pam McCune and Amiree Hendricks-Walker have the most blocks on the roster with 68.0 and 63.0, respectively.
SERIES HISTORY
• Wednesday's meeting between the two teams will mark the first time in program history Colorado and TCU have met.
• Iowa State leads the all-time series with TCU 18-4 and has won each of the previous three meetings.
HOME SWEET HOME
• TCU is 9-1 at home in Schollmaier Arena this season.
• The Frogs are averaging 14.97 kills per set on a .312 clip on their home court, while holding opponents to a .178 mark thanks to 2.37 blocks per set at the net.
• Five of the nine wins at home have been sweeps.
BUY STOCK NOW
• TCU is catching the attention of everyone across the nation, including the NCAA Selection Committee, who tabbed the Horned Frogs as the No. 14 team in their in-season ranking.
• The committee considered several criteria to determine their rankings, with an emphasis on head-to-head results, top-10 wins, and strength of schedule.
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
• Thrust into the starting role as a freshman, Lily Nicholson took over at setter for the Frogs' final 13 matches last season.
• Leading the TCU offense in 2024 with a full offseason under her belt, the McKinney, Texas, native picked up the 1,000th assist of her career against Rice (Sept. 21).
• With 785 assists on the year already, she has surpassed her total of 620 from 2023 and is on pace for a 1,000 assist season.
• Nicholson ranks 12th nationally with 10.75 assists per set and has TCU's offense attacking at a .261 clip (31st), on pace for the program's best single-season hitting percentage ever.
For all the latest TCU volleyball news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUVolleyball, on Instagram at @tcuvolleyball and on Facebook at TCU Volleyball.
TCU NOTABLES
• The Frogs look to bounce back in front of their home crowd following a tough five-set loss at No. 23 Baylor.
• TCU boasts a 9-1 record at home this season, including five sweeps.
• After cracking the poll for the first time ever seven weeks ago, the Frogs are climbing the rankings, up to No. 18 in the AVCA/TARAFLEX Coaches' Poll this week.
• Melanie Parra ranks inside the top 10 in the country in five different offensive categories, including second nationally in points per set (6.06) and kills per set (5.25).
• Parra is the first player in Division I women's volleyball history to win back-to-back AVCA/GameChanger Player of the Week honors (Sept. 10 & 17).
• TCU volleyball has caught the nation's attention, earning the No. 14 spot in the NCAA Selection Committee's in-season ranking.
• The Frogs boast the No. 11 RPI in the country coming into the week, the second highest mark of any Big 12 team.
SCOUTING REPORT
Coming off a loss to No. 21 BYU, Colorado takes on its second straight ranked opponent in TCU on Wednesday night in Fort Worth. The Buffaloes are sitting at 10-11 on the season, including a 3-6 mark in their first season in the Big 12 Conference. They rank 10th in the league standings with wins over Texas Tech, UCF and Arizona. As a team, Colorado is averaging 11.9 kills per set, set by outside hitter Ana Burilovic. The sophomore paces the Buffaloes with 296 kills (3.57 per set). Setter Taylor Simpson has the offense clicking, dishing out 9.41 assists per set while the team hits at a .214 mark. Defensively, libero Sarah Morton leads the way with 3.21 digs per set, and middle blocker Cayla Payne ranks second in the conference with 97 rejections.
Iowa State comes into the week with a 9-10 overall record on the season. The Cyclones are coming off a pair of losses to No. 9 Kansas and Kansas State and have a matchup at No. 17 Baylor on Wednesday. Ranked ninth in the Big 12, ISU is 3-5 in Conference play with wins over Cincinnati, Texas Tech and WVU. The Cyclones' depth has been tested this year as they have battled injury. Offensively, six athletes have registered over 100 kills, led by Lilly Wachholz (187) and Maya Duckworth (168). On the defensive side, senior libero Brooke Stonestreet leads the team with 306 total digs, the fifth most in the Big 12, and the middle blocker duo of Pam McCune and Amiree Hendricks-Walker have the most blocks on the roster with 68.0 and 63.0, respectively.
SERIES HISTORY
• Wednesday's meeting between the two teams will mark the first time in program history Colorado and TCU have met.
• Iowa State leads the all-time series with TCU 18-4 and has won each of the previous three meetings.
HOME SWEET HOME
• TCU is 9-1 at home in Schollmaier Arena this season.
• The Frogs are averaging 14.97 kills per set on a .312 clip on their home court, while holding opponents to a .178 mark thanks to 2.37 blocks per set at the net.
• Five of the nine wins at home have been sweeps.
BUY STOCK NOW
• TCU is catching the attention of everyone across the nation, including the NCAA Selection Committee, who tabbed the Horned Frogs as the No. 14 team in their in-season ranking.
• The committee considered several criteria to determine their rankings, with an emphasis on head-to-head results, top-10 wins, and strength of schedule.
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
• Thrust into the starting role as a freshman, Lily Nicholson took over at setter for the Frogs' final 13 matches last season.
• Leading the TCU offense in 2024 with a full offseason under her belt, the McKinney, Texas, native picked up the 1,000th assist of her career against Rice (Sept. 21).
• With 785 assists on the year already, she has surpassed her total of 620 from 2023 and is on pace for a 1,000 assist season.
• Nicholson ranks 12th nationally with 10.75 assists per set and has TCU's offense attacking at a .261 clip (31st), on pace for the program's best single-season hitting percentage ever.
For all the latest TCU volleyball news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUVolleyball, on Instagram at @tcuvolleyball and on Facebook at TCU Volleyball.
Players Mentioned
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