Preview: No. 17 Kansas - TCU Athletics

FORT WORTH – No. 13 TCU Volleyball plays its final home match of the month on Friday, Oct. 23, welcoming No. 17 Kansas to Schollmaier Arena for a top-25 matchup at 7 p.m. CT.

FAN GUIDE
• Fans are encouraged to wear purple on Friday to support the Frogs.
• TCU will host its annual Homecoming Parade at 5:30 p.m. before the match.
• Parking in Lots 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 will be restricted with limited access. These lots will close at 5 p.m. while the parade lines up on N. Bellaire Street and then proceeds north on Stadium Drive and finishing on W. Cantey Street.
• Please arrive prior to 4:45 p.m. if you want to park in one of these lots and then watch the Homecoming Parade. If unable to arrive prior to 4:45 p.m., these lots will begin to open up for parking after the last parade float passes each lot.
• After the parade has concluded, all lots will be available for parking for normal volleyball match operations.
• Schollmaier Arena doors will open at 6 p.m. to welcome fans in for the match.

TCU TIDBITS
• TCU checked in at No. 8 in the NCAA Selection Committee's in-season top-16 rankings, putting the Frogs in position to host NCAA Tournament matches for the first time.
• The Horned Frogs are ranked No. 13 in the latest AVCA/TARAFLEX Coaches Poll, extending their streak to 39 consecutive weeks in the top 25.
• TCU is 35-4 at home since the start of the 2024 season, including an 8-1 mark in Schollmaier Arena this year.
• Freshman middle blocker Kinsley Young ranks third in the Big 12 with 1.32 blocks per set and sits just 13 blocks shy of 100 on the season.
• Becca Kelley joined Evan Hendrix on the AVCA Division I Player of the Year Watch List, making TCU one of 15 programs with multiple selections.
• Kelley and Hendrix are the fourth highest-scoring attacking duo in D1 Volleyball, combining for 8.27 kills per set coming into the week.
• The Frogs rank top 25 nationally in four categories: kills per set (11th, 14.11), assists per set (14th, 13.03), hitting percentage (19th, .272) and blocks per set (22nd, 2.73).
• Molly McCarthy faces her former school Friday after spending four seasons at Kansas, where she was part of four NCAA Tournament teams.

SCOUTING KANSAS
No. 17 Kansas comes to Fort Worth with a 12-5 overall record and a 5-2 mark in Big 12 play after pushing No. 8 Arizona State to five sets on Sunday. Rookie pin hitter Taylor Stanley has quickly emerged as one of the best attackers in the country. The Big 12 Preseason Freshman of the Year leads the conference and ranks third nationally with 5.67 points per set. Stanley has reached double-digit kills in every match this season and earned her fourth Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors. Sophomore setter Reese Messer also leads the Big 12 at 10.50 assists per set and directs an offense that also features Preseason All-Big 12 middle blocker Reese Ptacek and junior pin Grace Nelson. Kansas leads the all-time series with TCU, 21-6. The two teams split their meetings last season, with the Frogs earning a 3-1 victory in Fort Worth before Kansas answered with a sweep in Lawrence three weeks later. Five of TCU's six victories in the series have come at home.

CAN YOU DIG IT?
» Alice Volpe recorded her 1,000th career dig against Texas Tech last Friday, becoming the 13th player in TCU history to reach the milestone.
» The junior libero anchors the Frogs' back line with 230 (3.83 digs per set).
» Earlier this season, Volpe registered a career-high 27 digs against Michigan (Sept. 11), tying the second-most digs of any player in the Big 12 in a single match this season.
» Volpe broke out as a sophomore in 2025, tallying 476 digs, the eighth most in a single season in school history.
» In her first season in purple, she won the starting job halfway through the season, starting the final 15 matches and recording 308 digs.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
» TCU's Evan Hendrix and Becca Kelley have established themselves as one of the most dangerous attacking duos in the country.
» Hendrix ranks seventh in the Big 12 with 4.19 kills per set (29th nationally), while Kelley ranks eighth with 4.08 per set (37th nationally).
» They are one of just three pairs of teammates nationally averaging at least 4.00 kills per set each, joining UNI's Cassidy Hartman and Lily Dykstra and Santa Clara's Morgan Hayes and Cate Shanahan.
» Further, Hendrix and Kelley's combined 8.27 kills per set coming into the week are the fourth most of any duo in D1 volleyball in 2026.

STOCK RISING
» TCU is catching the attention of everyone across the nation, including the NCAA Selection Committee, which tabbed the Horned Frogs as the No. 8 team in their in-season ranking.
» The Frogs' resume features top-25 wins over No. 8 SMU, No. 14 Purdue and No. 24 Colorado.
» TCU's only losses have come at the hands of No. 2 Texas, No. 6 Louisville, No. 11 Arizona State and Baylor.
» The committee considered several criteria to determine their rankings, with an emphasis on head-to-head results, top-10 wins, and strength of schedule.
» TCU has its sights set on hosting postseason play in Fort Worth for the first time in school history and looks to secure a top-16 ranking on Nov. 29 during the NCAA Selection Show.

SHE'S JUST A FRESHMAN
» Middle blocker Kinsley Young doesn't play like a rookie. This season, the Southlake, Texas, product ranks third in the Big 12 with 1.32 blocks per set.
» With 87 on the season so far, she has her sights set on triple digits and the TCU freshman record of 123.0 total blocks (Kourtney Edwards, 2006).
» In addition to her defense, Young also proved to be a weapon who can score in the middle. She's averaging 1.80 kills per set for the Frogs on a .363 clip.
» In the win over Rice on Sept. 18, she tallied a career-best 16 kills, the most by a TCU middle blocker since Mykayla Myers had 16 vs. Oklahoma in 2021.
» Young also became the first TCU middle blocker to record a double-double since Myers in 2021 (10 kills and 10 blocks vs. WVU).

For all the latest TCU volleyball news, follow the Frogs on X at @TCUVolleyball, on Instagram at @tcuvolleyball and on Facebook at TCU Volleyball.

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Players Mentioned

Evan Hendrix

Becca Kelley

Molly McCarthy

Alice Volpe

Kinsley Young

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