In absence of star, this Wichita State volleyball player has stepped up for the Shockers
With an explosive option missing on the outside, Natalie Foster has picked up the slack in the middle for the Wichita State volleyball team.
In the absence of preseason American Athletic Conference Co-Player of the Year Brylee Kelly, the 6-foot-4 junior middle blocker has cemented herself as the go-to option for the Shockers during non-conference play.
Foster put down better than 70% of her swings for a team-high 36 kills during the Shockers’ trip to the Northern Colorado Classic, which resulted in a perfect 3-0 record in the non-conference finale.
WSU improved its season record to 6-4 with a sweep over Bradley (25-21, 25-17, 25-22), a five-set battle with Omaha (25-10, 25-19, 19-25, 21-25, 15-7) and the crown jewel of the weekend with a victory over the host team, Northern Colorado, rather handily in four sets (25-15, 19-25, 25-15, 25-16).
Foster was at her best against Northern Colorado this past Saturday, finishing with a match-high 14 kills on 17 swings against an NCAA Tournament team from last season. She also added 11 kills each against Bradley and Omaha, as she has the most kills on the team (103) with the highest hitting percentage (.421).
It’s not too surprising Foster has stepped up, as she has been an all-conference middle blocker before this season and led WSU in hitting percentage (.382) and was second on the team in kills (361) and kills per set (3.01) last season.
The Shockers have greatly needed the efficient offense with Kelly limited to just 15 of 40 sets during non-conference play. She’s clearly been limited with an abdomen injury during the 15 sets she has played, as she has just 23 kills on a .125 hitting percentage this season. Kelly played in the final two matches of this past trip, perhaps an encouraging sign heading into conference play.
After a rough homestand for the team’s offense in losses to No. 22 Kansas and Colorado, WSU bounced back in a big way in the Northern Colorado trip.
WSU head coach Chris Lamb stuck with senior Izzi Strand as the sole setter and she responded with a superb three-games-in-three-days stretch, averaging 39.3 assists and 11.7 digs in the three victories.
In the Northern Colorado victory, good passing kept the Shockers in system and Strand spread the love with the offense finishing with a .331 hitting percentage. Foster (14) led the way, but junior middle Morgan Stout (12), sophomore outside Emerson Wilford (nine) and senior opposite Sophia Rohling (eight) weren’t far behind in kills.
WSU was even better against Bradley with a .359 team hitting percentage, as Wilford (13), Rohling (11) and Foster (11) all finished with double-digit kills.
The offense was cruising against Omaha, winning the first two sets with a combined .479 hitting percentage. But the Shockers hit a bump and lost two straight sets to a winless Omaha team, then avoided disaster with a dominant fifth set to pull out the 15-7 victory.
Rohling finished with a match-high 16 kills, while Stout notched 10 kills and was a part of eight blocks, Foster had 11 kills, Morgan Weber delivered nine kills with 10 digs and Strand doled out 41 assists and had a team-high 13 digs.
WSU takes a 6-4 record into the start of American Athletic Conference play, as the Shockers travel to East Carolina for a single match on Wednesday before returning home to host Charlotte at Koch Arena in a 7 p.m. Saturday match.
