Shockers Drop Five-Set Thriller to Rice

Box Score

South FloridaWICHITA, Kan. -- Wichita State took two of the first three sets but could not hold off a late charge from Rice as the Owls defeated the Shockers 23-25, 25-18, 25-22, 15-25, 10-15 on Sunday afternoon at Charles Koch Arena.

The Owls (9-4, 4-0) hit .417 and .550 over the last two sets, respectively, after the Shockers (8-8, 3-1) had held Rice below .200 in each of the first three frames. Samarah Hill finished with 18 kills and 15 digs to lead the Owls, while libero Gaby Mansfield piled up 31 digs for match-best honors.

The Shockers got 13 kills apiece from and , while finished just shy of a double-double with 10 kills and nine digs.

In a precursor of things to come, the Owls…