Thursday, October 23
Grand Forks, ND
7:00 PM
Kansas City
at
North Dakota
Photo by: Anna Simms
Notes: Kansas City Starts Back Half of League Play With Road Contests vs. North Dakota & North Dakota State
10/22/2025 3:38:00 PM | Volleyball
Roos face Fighting Hawks Thursday night at 7 p.m. in Grand Forks, Bison Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. in Fargo
Kansas City Notes
- Kansas City Volleyball heads to the Great Plains of N.D. to take on North Dakota and North Dakota State. The Roos are 1-1 against the Fighting Hawks and Bison, taking both matches to five sets and beating UND while falling to NDSU in early October.
- Kansas City comes off a stretch of back and forth results yielding a 3-0 sweep over Oral Roberts and most recently, a 3-1 loss to Omaha Tuesday evening. At 2-6 in Summit action, the Roos are tied for seventh in the conference with UND.
- Kansas City has rattled off five straight wins in the all-time series against North Dakota. The Roos haven't dropped a match to the Fighting Hawks since 2022 and have found victory in Grand Forks in both the 23' and 24' seasons.
- Lyla Jones reached the landmark 1,000 career assist milestone Tuesday night as the senior setter eclipsed the 1K mark with her third of the night. Jones posted 20 kills vs. Omaha, bringing her career total to 1,017. The UAPB transfer leads the team in assists (373) which ranks 6th in the Summit.
- Emry Brown had a field day last time out against North Dakota, tallying a career high 19 kills and 17 digs, her first career double-double. Brown is coming off a 16-kill outing vs. Omaha and is 3rd on the team in kills with 116 and 2nd in kills per set averaging 2.04 in 25'.
- The Roos have heavily relied on their freshman class with four first year players having played in 30 sets or more this season. Brown, Mia Weaver, Stella Smith and Megan Lawson have combined for over 200 sets played this season, laying the foundation for a bright future in the years to come.
- Alaina Larson ranks 8th in the Summit League in digs at 230 while holding a steady rate of 3.07 digs per set in 2025 which ranks 11th best in the conference. Larson has produced 11 matches of double figure digs including a career-best 25 dig outing against Saint Louis.
- Ledisi Kpea anchors the Roos defense, ranking 4th in the Summit League in total blocks at 78 while averaging 1.03 blocks per set which ranks 5th best in the conference. Kpea's 15 solo blocks is tied for the 1st best mark in the conference.
- Ryanne Wattree leads the Roos offense with 165 kills and a kills per set rate of 2.23, both team highs this season. The sophomore has produced six matches of double figure kills to date in her breakout campaign.
- The Roos ranks 2nd in the Summit in total attacks and total digs at 2,626 and 1,107 respectively. Kansas City is top 100 nationally in both of those statistical categories.
- North Dakota sits at 5-14 overall and 2-6 in league action this season. The Fighting Hawks are on a two game skid and are 3-6 at home this season. UND is tied with the Roos for seventh place in the Summit standings, making Thursday's match a pivotal one for both sides.
- Paige Barber (263 kills) and Sylvie Zgonc (244 kills) rank second and third in the Summit League in kills this season. Barber's 263 kills this season matches a career season best for her.
- Last time UND played KC, Paige Barber had a season-high 26 kills, good for the most in a five-set match all-time at UND. Barber has three 20+ kill performances this season and 11 consecutive double-digit kills.
- The Hawks currently sit seventh in the Summit League, tied with Omaha and Kansas City. UND has nine more conference games this season.
- North Dakota State is 11-7 overall and 5-3 in conference play. The Bison are currently on a three game skid, falling to the likes of USD, SDSU and UST before Saturday's match against Kansas City.
- Arianna Blohm leads NDSU with 66.0 total blocks and is averaging 1.06 blocks per set, which ranks fifth in the Summit League. She's also one of the most efficient offensive players in the lineup with a team-best .306 hitting percentage.
- Lauren Jansen has reached double digits in kills in 14 matches and leads the Bison with 209 kills, which ranks fifth in the Summit League. She is also positioned in fifth in the league with a team-best 3.37 kills per set.
- The Bison were picked to finish sixth in the Summit League Preseason Coaches' Poll and garnered 32 points.
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
S
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MB/RS
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DS/L
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DS/L
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MB
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RS/OH
/ Volleyball
OH
/ VolleyballPostgame Interview: Coach Posey-post Omaha
Tuesday, October 21
Volleyball Highlights vs. Omaha
Tuesday, October 21
Volleyball Highlights at Oral Roberts
Saturday, October 18
Volleyball Highlights vs. South Dakota
Wednesday, October 15