WKU volleyball travels to Lexington Thursday to take on the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
WKU will make their 17th NCAA tournament appearance.
The Hilltoppers and Golden Gophers have met once before way back in 1984. This will be the first matchup under Head Coach Travis Hudson.
WKU is led by the 2024 Conference USA Player of the Year Kaylee Cox. Cox leads the Hilltoppers in kills with 454. WKU has been a problem behind the service line with three players having more than 30 aces.
The Hilltoppers are spearheaded by both sophomore middle hitter Izzy Van De Wiele and junior defensive specialist Abby Shaefer. Van De Wiele leads the way for WKU in blocks with 173 which is good for fourth in Division I. On the other hand, Shaefer has set up the offense with 381 kills.
Minnesota is led by junior outside hitter Julia Hanson who has racked up 445 kills on the year. It will be a battle of the blocks as the Gophers graduate middle blocker Phoebe Awoleye has 164 blocks on the season which puts her sixth in Division I.
The matchup is set for 3:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
Sports Reporter Peyton Reid can be reached at [email protected].
