Sixth-Seeded Baylor VB Readies for the Red Wolves on Thursday

[Roberts, Matt]

BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – Dec. 3, 2025

Sixth-Seeded Baylor VB Readies for the Red Wolves on Thursday
BU is 9-0 in opening-round matches under Ryan McGuyre
For more information, contact: Matt Roberts, 254-227-2280, WM_Roberts at Baylor.edu<mailto:WM_Roberts at Baylor.edu>
Volleyball Media Materials: https://baylorbea.rs/vbmedia


WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – No. 21 and sixth-seeded Baylor volleyball embarks on its 10th-straight NCAA Tournament journey on Thursday afternoon when it takes on Arkansas State at Holloway Gymnasium.

Thursday marks just the third time in the last eight years that Baylor will play an NCAA Tournament first-round match away from the Ferrell Center. Going 17-13 all-time in the postseason, BU has won all nine previous opening-round matches under head coach Ryan McGuyre.

While Baylor finished the season 5-7 in road matches, they have won each of the last two, including a five-set win over No. 20 TCU last week. Additionally, the Bears have played 30 sets this season decided by the requisite two points. Finishing 12-18 in those chances, BU has won four of the last six, and Junior middle blocker Victoria Davis feels like this team is hitting its stride as the calendar turns to December.

“I think we had a lot of great conversations throughout the month of November, figuring out what works and what doesn’t,” she said. “We’ve been able to fine-tune a lot of things we’ve been talking about all season, and it has finally all clicked in our past few games. We feel like we have a lot of momentum going into this tournament.”

Baylor has won all five previous meetings with Arkansas State, the last coming in September of 2012. The Red Wolves have tallied wins over SEC foes Missouri and Arkansas, while going 1-2 against UCF and South Alabama, a pair BU went 2-0 against this season.

The Bears are powered by a star-studded freshman class featuring Ksenia Rakhmanchik, Bailey Warren and libero Morgan Madison, each an All-Big 12 honoree, who have combined for 538 kills and nearly 650 digs.

Surrounding that young core is a proven group of veterans led by All-Big 12 second-teamer Gabrielle Essix. One of the most efficient attackers in program history, Manuela Bibinbe provides versatility and physicality, ranking second on the team with 292.5 points. Setter Harley Kreck has put her stamp on the offense with 836 assists on the year, en route to a team-leading five double-doubles. Davis provides consistency as one of the team’s most efficient and experienced hitters boasting a team-high .326 hitting percentage, sitting second on the squad with 95 total blocks.

Baylor gets jumping against Arkansas State on Thursday at 3:30 p.m. CT from Holloway Gymnasium. Coverage will be available on ESPN+,<https://bit.ly/4p89iJB> with live stats available through StatBroadcast<http://statb.us/b/625574>. More tournament info can be found at the Tournament Central Page.<https://bit.ly/4pA5qAY>

Follow @BaylorVball on X, Instagram and Facebook for additional updates.

—Baylorbears.com—



Matt Roberts | Director of Athletic Communications

Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 254-227-2280

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