The Kansas volleyball train kept rolling over the weekend, with the Jayhawks sweeping UCF in Orlando just two days after taking down Kansas State in 5 sets at home.
While the Jayhawks’ most recent win itself was certainly no surprise, the fact that it came while Kansas was playing without one of the top hitters in the country was noteworthy.
Not to worry. Even without senior middle blocker Toyosi Onabanjo in the lineup, the Jayhawks found all they needed at that position in the form of freshmen middles Reese Ptacek and Zoey Burgess.
Burgess, who was the Big 12’s preseason freshman of the year, delivered 7 kills and a block in the sweep of UCF. And Ptacek added 8 kills and 3 blocks in the victory.
After starting the season with a big role, Burgess began to spend more time with the reserves than on the floor in recent weeks. But as soon as Onabanjo went down against K-State, Burgess jumped back into the lineup and didn’t miss a beat.
Her size, natural ability and passion bring a lot to the court for Kansas. The biggest thing for her is consistency. But KU coach Ray Bechard told R1S1 Sports that Burgess and Toyosi have become fast friends and were spiritually connected, leading him to believe that the 6-4 freshman from Alpine, Utah would do whatever it took to step in for Onabanjo when her number was called.
The good news for the Jayhawks is, picking up the slack for Onabanjo’s stellar play while she’s out will not fall on just one player.
Around the same time that Burgess started to take a step back in terms of playing time, Ptacek — pronounced “Pa-tack” — began to take a step forward.
KU freshman Reese Ptacek competes vs. K-State. [Chance Parker photos]
A week ago, Ptacek was named Big 12 rookie of the week for her role in a pair of KU victories. Burgess won the honor back in early-September.
Together, the two young middles will look to hold down the position for as long as it takes until Onabanjo, who ranks 4th nationally in hitting percentage, can return.
And both came to college with the sort of team-first philosophy that makes it an easy transition for whichever one is on the floor at any given moment.
“I love Zoey; she’s amazing,” Ptacek told R1S1 Sports after the win over K-State. “She’s a great person. Regardless of how things go, I think we’ll be able to take care of business. This team deserves my best.”
Now up to 20 sets played out of 58 for the Jayhawks so far this season (Burgess has appeared in 38), Ptacek has started to emerge for two big reasons — health and confidence.
Slowed by injury in the early going, the 6-3 freshman from Prescott, Wisconsin has gone the distance in the Jayhawks last four matches, looking stronger and more confident with each rally.
“We’re really excited about where she’s at with her trajectory,” Bechard said after the win over Kansas State. “She was great on our road trip (in wins over West Virginia and Cincinnati), but just the last couple weeks there’s been an emergence there with her competitive confidence.”
Known as a dynamic hitter with good bounce and timing and rock-solid blocker, Ptacek has averaged 10 kills per match in the last four outings, while adding 24 blocks in that stretch, as well.
It’s numbers like those that earned her the conference honor, not that she spent too much time celebrating that one.
“After I saw that I won it, I called my mom and dad and told them I loved them and thanked them for everything,” Ptacek said. “It’s an amazing award, but the job’s not done. There’s so much more I want this team to accomplish.”
Ptacek began playing volleyball when she was 8 years old with parks and rec teams back home.
“I was just playing for fun,” she said.
A few years after she first picked up the sport, her mom saw an ad for her old Northern Heat volleyball club and immediately wondered if her daughter would be interested in checking it out.
“I was like, ‘You know what, let’s try it,’” Ptacek said. “Tried it and loved it.”
She eventually switched her club allegiance to Northern Lights in Burnsville, Minnesota, and her passion for the game grew during both stints.
“From there, the dream then became going and playing in college,” she said. “Where I wanted to go, I had no idea until I got here and then I got here and immediately was like, ‘I’m going to KU.’”
She came in with a loaded freshman class. And they’re all learning from and led by a group of veterans who have their eyes fixed on making this as good of a season as KU volleyball has ever had.
So far, so good. KU, at No. 9, has been ranked in the Top 10 of the AVCA poll for the past six weeks. Over the weekend, the NCAA Selection Committee released its sneak peek at the Top 16 seeds to date, with the Jayhawks landing at No. 11.
When the bracket is finalized later this season, the top 16 seeds will host first and second-round NCAA Tournament matches.
Bechard has been proud of the way both Burgess and Ptacek have approached Year 1 with the Jayhawks. It’s a veteran team. A talented team. And there’s a role for both of them. But rather than worry too much about what they have to do or when they need to do it, both have worked hard and stayed ready for moments exactly like this one.
It’s hard for any one player to replace Onabanjo’s presence on the floor. She’s the loudest most demonstrative Jayhawk in the gym. And she plays with a fire that inspires her teammates and brings the KU side of the net to life in good moments and bad.
But Burgess and Ptacek are both up for the challenge and eager to see what more they can bring to the court and the program.
“I just try to work my best,” Ptacek said. “So, I just try to keep my head high no matter what the circumstances are, no matter how I’m playing and just live it up. It’s a great experience and opportunity, and I want to take it all in. … Let’s keep going. There’s more work to be done.”
Next up, KU (16-1 overall, 7-0 Big 12) will play host to Iowa State (9-8, 3-3) on Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. at Horejsi Family Volleyball Arena.
— For tickets to all KU athletic events, visit kuathletics.com
