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Kansas Prepared For Volleyball Semi In Big Red Country

After the first semifinal match between Texas and Minnesota Thursday at the NCAA women’s volleyball championship, the Kansas Jayhawks play the second match of the evening against Nebraska.

The Jayhawks are bracing themselves for a crowd that won’t be in favor of them. KU junior Maggie Anderson grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska, and followed the Huskers throughout high school, so she knows the volleyball pulse.

It might seem naïve when she said this about playing the Huskers in Omaha: “This is supposed to be a neutral site and we’re just jacked to play in front of fans that like to watch the sport.”

Her coach, Ray Bechard, knew better.

He sarcastically posed this question: “Didn’t every school get 200 tickets?”

The attendance record for a championship match in women’s volleyball dates back to 2008. A crowd of 17,430 watched a semifinal match between Nebraska and Penn State. Penn State won the match.

Sports have an economic and social impact on our community and, as a sports reporter, I go beyond the scores and statistics. I also bring the human element to the sports figures who have a hand in shaping the future of not only their respective teams but our town. Reach me at gregechlin@aol.com.
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