Shocker Brew 9/20: Sheer Determination

Today, women's tennis opens its fall campaign and volleyball rallies past Cal Poly for a win

Author

Zach Garrett
September 20, 2024

Good morning! Wichita State Athletics has teamed up with Influencer to launch the Shocker NIL Exchange to connect student-athletes and businesses for name, image and likeness opportunities. Free to both student-athletes and commercial enterprises, Shocker NIL Exchange provides a customized portal for communicating with student-athletes and fulfilling NIL transactions.

What else are we mixing into today’s edition of the Shocker Brew?

🎾 Women’s tennis opens its fall campaign
🏐 Volleyball rallies past Cal Poly for a win
🌾 ​ And much, much more!

🌾 ONE BIG THING

The Wichita State women's tennis team opens the 2024 fall campaign with a short trip to Manhattan, where the Shockers will play in the Kansas State Invitational, September 20-22. The Shockers will face high-level, ranked competition at the Invitational, as Arkansas, Iowa State, and South Florida, join host Kansas State at the Invitational. Four of the five teams were ranked at multiple points at the ITA top 75 poll during the 2024 spring season. All but one Shocker will compete in the event, as sophomore standout Xin Tong Wang has earned a bid to compete in the ITA All-American Championships in Cary, North Carolina.

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 Rallied Back. Wichita State volleyball got eight kills over the last two sets from Alyssa Gonzales and five team blocks in the fifth set alone to rally past Cal Poly in five sets on Thursday night at Charles Koch Arena. In the Shocker’s fourth win of the season, the team finished with 18 blocks overall, led by nine block assists and one solo rejection from Sara Barham. The blocks helped overcome a 13-kill deficit and a 26-dig disparity. Gonzales finished with a team-high 12 kills on a .357 hitting percentage, while Emerson Wilford logged a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs.

🔼 Serving On The Sideline. Shocker men’s basketball made an addition to the sidelines after head coach Paul Mills named Nolan Magee the program’s new Director of Operations. Magee will have a hand in scheduling, camps, practice times, team itineraries and coordinating academics between student-athletes and student services.

🔼 The Roundhouse Podcast. Voice of the Shockers, Mike Kennedy and Tami Cutler with strategic communications join the Roundhouse Podcast to reminisce about volleyball coach Chris Lamb as he enters his 25th season at Wichita State. The crew discusses Lamb’s passion for teaching the sport, educating fans and using baseball analogies. Plus, hear about the first NCAA team in 2004, the 2017 AAC champions and why Lamb possessed the ability to turn Shocker volleyball into a force.

🤔 SHOCKER TRIVIA

Sheer Determination. Today’s trivia question…which Shocker volleyball student-athlete used creative content when she wasn’t able to meet the WSU coaches face to face?

Think you got it? Scroll down to see if you know your stuff!

🤝 SHARE THE BREW

Do you know a friend or family member who is a Shocker fan? Simply forward them this email and they can sign up to receive the brew by clicking the link below to subscribe. The Shocker Brew is sent every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and is completely free!

📆 LOOKING AHEAD

*All times CST

Friday, September 20
🎾 Women’s Tennis @ Kansas State Tournament in Manhattan, KS
🏐 Volleyball vs. Northern Colorado @ 7 p.m. in Wichita, KS | Tickets | Watch

Saturday, September 21
🎾 Women’s Tennis @ Kansas State Tournament in Manhattan, KS
🎾 Women’s Tennis @ ITA All-American Championships in Cary, NC
🎾 Men’s Tennis @ ITA All-American Championships in Tulsa, OK
🏐 Volleyball vs. Omaha @ 4 p.m. in Wichita, KS | Tickets | Watch

Sunday, September 22
🎾 Women’s Tennis @ Kansas State Tournament in Manhattan, KS
🎾 Women’s Tennis @ ITA All-American Championships in Cary, NC
🎾 Men’s Tennis @ ITA All-American Championships in Tulsa, OK

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Heliste's creative content got her noticed, got her to Wichita State, and, this season, got her the libero uniform. While her skill with iMovie provided the origin story, Heliste's determination and skills have put her in a position for a significant senior season.

🌾 Have a great weekend, y’all!