Dec. 22, 2009
WACO, Texas - Capping a historic season, Baylor's volleyball team was ranked No. 20 in the final poll released on Tuesday by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
The Bears (24-10, 11-9 Big 12), who reached as high as 17th during a school-record nine-week stretch of earning a top 25 ranking, finish the season ranked for just the second time in program history. Baylor's NCAA Tournament run to finish the year included a sweep of Georgia Tech and an upset of eighth-seeded UCLA in Los Angeles, before coming to a halt against ninth-seeded California.
BU began the season with a school-record 11-match win streak, going on to win 17 of its first 18 matches. The stretch included a 3-0 sweep over Iowa State, who finished the season ranked sixth in the nation. At the time, ISU was ranked 11th, which stood as the highest-ranked win ever for BU, until the Bears pulled off the upset of ninth-ranked UCLA. The Bears defeated four Top 25 opponents during the season, also including No. 24 Purdue and at No. 23 Texas A&M.
Individually, senior setter Taylor Barnes and senior middle blocker Anna Breyfogle became the first All-Americans in program history when they were named to the AVCA All-America Honorable Mention. Both earned all-Big 12 and all-region honors, while Breyfogle was named the Big 12's Defensive Player of the Year. Freshman middle blocker Torri Campbell was named to the All-Big 12 Freshman Team.
2009 SEASON ACCOMPLISHMENTS
• Reached Sweet 16 for the first time in school history
• 1st All-Americans in school history: Taylor Barnes and Anna Breyfogle.
• Big 12 Defensive player of the year: Anna Breyfogle
• Earned third NCAA Tournament berth in school history
• Highest ranking in school history at No. 17
• Ranked for a school-record nine consecutive weeks
• Finished the 2009 season ranked #20 in the nation
• 24-10 overall, 11-9 Big 12
• Win total (24) marks the fourth-highest in school history
• Most Big 12 wins (11) since 1999, and second-most ever
• Beat two highest-ranked teams in BU history with wins over No. 9 UCLA and No. 11 Iowa State
• Defeated four Top 25 teams, the most in a season since 1999 and second-most ever
• Broke single-match attendance record with 3,022 vs. Texas A&M
• Set single-season attendance record with a total of 11,407 fans
• Set single-season average attendance with 815 per match
• Tied a school record winning 17 sets in a row from Sept. 19-Oct. 7
• Tied a school record winning 11 straight matches from Aug. 28-Sept. 12
• Set school record for wins to open a season with 11
• Set school record for Big 12 win streak with 6 in a row from Sept. 19-Oct. 7
• Best start to season in school history winning 17 of first 18 matches
• Two first-team all-Big 12 and all-Central region selections for the second year in a row
• Big 12 all-freshman team selection (first since 2007)
• Two Academic All-Big 12 selections
• Broke or tied five single-match individual tournament records
INDIVIDUAL PLAYER ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Taylor Barnes
• Honorable Mention All-American
• Two-time All-Big 12 Selection (2008, 2009)
• Two-time All-Central Region Selection (2008, 2009)
• Broke Big 12 and BU record for career service aces (205)
• Broke Baylor record for career assists (5,120)
• Four career triple doubles (2 in 2006, 2 in 2009)
• First player in BU history with 5,000+ assists
• Had triple-double in 3-0 sweep of then-No. 11 Iowa State
• Recorded 10 double-doubles, including a 50-assist/20-dig match at No. 9 UCLA
• One of two players in BU history with 4,000+ assists and 1,000+ digs
• Comcast Lobo Challenge Most Valuable Player
• Baylor Classic All-Tournament Team
• Second on team in hitting percentage (.325)
• Ranked first on team and sixth in Big 12 with 10.74 assists per set
• Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 28)
• Two-time All-Big 12 Preseason Selection (2008, 2009)
Anna Breyfogle
• Honorable Mention All-American
• 2009 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year
• Two-time All-Big 12 Selection (2008, 2009)
• Two-time All-Central Region Selection (2008, 2009)
• Led Big 12 in blocks per set with 1.37
• Broke rally-era career blocks record (620)
• Led BU in hitting percentage at .326 on the season
• Set record for blocks in a three-set match with 12 at Houston
• Named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week (Aug. 31)
• Second player in BU history with 1,000+ kills and 600+ blocks
• Has recorded at least one block in 92 consecutive contests dating back to Nov. 18, 2006, her freshman season (one block in 119 of 121 career matches)
• Named to the Comcast Lobo Challenge All-Tournament team
• Set career-high with 21 kills at New Mexico
• Had 13 matches with at least 10 kills, and 17 matches with at least five blocks
• Three-time Academic All-Big 12 Selection (2007, 2008, 2009)
• Two-time All-Big 12 Preseason Selection (2008, 2009)
Katie Sanders
• Led Baylor in kills (378), kills per set (3.18) and attacks (1,146)
• Second on the team in digs (348) and digs per set (2.92)
• Became just the seventh player in BU history with 1,000+ kills/1,000+ digs
• Broke BU rally-era record for career kills (1,547) and career attempts (4,365)
• Ranks third all-time in kills, just one behind Stevie Nicholas (1999-02)
• Had at least 10 kills in 23 of 33 matches, leading Baylor in kills 22 times
• Ranks fourth in rally era and 10th all-time in career digs (1,119)
• Recorded a team-high 15 double-doubles on the season
• Had 10-plus digs 19 times on the season
• Recorded a season-high 20 kills against No. 24 Purdue
Torri Campbell
• Third player in BU history to earn an All-Big 12 Freshman Team selection
• Recorded at least one block in all 31 matches played
• Earned Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors (Nov. 2)
• First among Big 12 freshmen and second on team in blocks with 1.00 per set
• Had a career-high nine blocks on two occasions (at No. 9 Iowa State, at No. 23 Texas A&M)
• Set a career-high with 18 kills at No. 9 Iowa State
• Fourth on the team in kills (252) and hitting percentage(.265)
• Second among Big 12 freshmen in kills
• 30th-ranked recruit by Prepvolleyball.com
• Recorded at least one block in every match played
Allison King
• Broke BU all-time single-season digs per set record (4.46)
• In just two seasons, ranks fifth in rally-era career digs (980)
• Led team in digs with second-highest single season total in BU history (535)
• Only BU player to play every set of all 34 matches
• Ranks first all-time in career digs per set with 4.21
• Recorded a career-high 32 digs at No. 9 Iowa State, the fifth-highest single-match total at BU
• Recorded 20-plus digs six times, and 10-plus digs 28 times on the season
