Last night, the Kansas State volleyball team wasn't thinking about 2009.
The Wildcats don't seem to be the same team that lost six straight sets against the Jayhawks in two matches last season. This group, so far, is different.
K-State players say they've learned from last season. They grew together during a nonconference slate this season, preparing them both mentally and physically for the grind of the Big 12 schedule.
The Wildcats preached that mentality all week heading into Wednesday's tilt with the in-state rival Kansas Jayhawks.
"We are an entirely different team," KSU coach Suzie Fritz said after practice on Monday.
With the Jayhawks in town Wednesday, the Wildcats had the perfect opportunity to back up that claim. If there were any
doubters inside Ahearn Field House, they most likely left in silence.
The Wildcats (6-5, 1-0 Big 12) made their statement clear, opening Big 12 play with a thrilling 3-1 victory over Kansas (9-3, 0-1 Big 12) in front of a raucous home crowd of more than 3,100.
"It really shows we are growing as a team," KSU sophomore middle blocker Alex Muff said.
It wasn't easy, but the Wildcats made their voices heard.
"There is that feeling of, 'you don't want to go through that again,'" KSU sophomore Kathleen Ludwig said. "I think, more than anything, as a team, we want to go through a better experience."
K-State marched out to a quick start in the match, stealing the first two sets from the Jayhawks, 25-15 and 25-20.
It suddenly looked as if a sweep of the Jayhawks was going to come easy for K-State. The Wildcats couldn't do anything wrong, hitting accurately and holding the Jayhawks to under .100 on their attacks.
"I think we were dialed in," Fritz said. "I thought we were pretty focused, we were playing pretty disciplined early on.
"The combination of the first two games, in a lot of ways, was the best two-game set we have played together, which I'm excited about. Anybody can play for one game, one point, one something, it's a matter of being able to put it together over time."
But this is a rivalry, the Big 12, and KU showed that it wasn't going to go down without a fight.
And so, after the intermission the Jayhawks came out with new life.
Kansas mounted a quick 9-3 lead by way of a 6-0 run to open the third set, forcing the Wildcats to use two timeouts within three points.
"I felt like we came out in game three and got just a little bit tentative," Fritz said. "I felt like they upgraded, and so we were having a hard time getting back in a rhythm. They started getting things going a little bit, and when you get a little bit of momentum, it's hard to shut them back down again once you let them go."
The Wildcats did indeed let the Jayhawks slip by. They took the third set 25-23, along with a large chunk of the Kansas State momentum. K-State hit just .125 in the set with just 11 kills and six attack errors.
A once rowdy Ahearn crowd was suddenly silent.
The Wildcats' troubles however, didn't cease with the third set. They suddenly found themselves down 18-8 in the fourth and in immediate danger of the match going the full five sets.
Then, senior JuliAnne Chisholm stepped in.
The senior outside hitter and leader of the Wildcat offense, proved herself to be the anchor of the offense yet again. Chisholm willed the Wildcats back into the match after connecting on four consecutive kills.
The sudden momentum spark brought the Wildcats back to life, as sophomore Caitlynn Donahue and Alex Muff followed the run with two kills of their own bringing the Wildcats to within four points at 18-14.
"JuliAnne wants to win the match by herself," Fritz said. "That's how she is. When it comes down the stretch, we want to give her the ball, she wants the ball. That's just kind of where she is at in her career."
Chisholm's offensive spark was a pivotal swing of events as the Wildcats began their slow crawl back into the set and the match itself. There was no doubt that anybody on the Wildcat bench was fearful of a fifth set with a now resurgent Kansas team.
"If it went five I thought we were in trouble," Fritz said.
But this team didn't let that happen.
"We knew what we needed to do," sophomore Kathleen Ludwig said. "I don't think it was a situation where we were confused or lost, I think we just needed to come together and make some plays together."
It was Ludwig who sustained the late run in the fourth and final set. She had three kills during the Wildcats' comeback surge, and hit a team leading .438 on the night.
The Wildcats were able to hold off Kansas late in the fourth set, despite facing a match point at 24-22.
"We just kind of had it in our minds," Muff said. "It was one of those things that, 'we don't want to do this, we don't want to go into the fifth set and we want to beat them now.'"
K-State pushed the match back and forth from match point to match point, and eventually overtook the Jayhawks, winning the match with a 30-29 victory in the fourth set.
The Wildcats continue Big 12 play when they travel to Lubbock, Texas to face Texas Tech on Saturday. First serve is set for noon.
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