When coach David Rehr walked into practice at Fertitta Center this week, he was met with a promotional graphic listing Houston volleyball’s October home games. The first? A matchup with No. 15 Kansas.
It would be the Cougars’ first home appearance since Sept. 27.
“That’s a little bit of a tough task,” Rehr said. “Hopefully, being back home tomorrow night is going to help us a whole lot.”
After a grueling stretch of four straight road losses, Rehr hoped the homecoming would offer relief.
Their road trip, spanning Waco, Colorado and two stops in Utah, exposed a recurring flaw: Houston’s inability to close out matches. That weakness was most glaring in the reverse sweep loss to Utah.
Facing two ranked opponents, including then No. 15 Baylor and No. 21 BYU, in their home environments may have masked the issue, but the road swing ultimately showed Houston’s struggle to finish strong.
In response, the team spent the week drilling a point-by-point mindset, shifting focus from racing to 25 to staying composed in each rally. They hoped the return to Fertitta would help them settle in.
Instead, a familiar story unfolded.
In a pivotal second set on Thursday night, Houston jumped ahead 5-2 and held the lead until Kansas tied it at 18.
Redshirt sophomore outside hitter Alyssa Gonzales sparked a late push, delivering three straight points as the teams traded blows at 19 and 20. But a service error from freshman setter Tenesyn Frye stalled the momentum and allowed Kansas to even the score again at 21.
Houston never led again, allowing Kansas to take three straight before another service error, this time from Gonzales herself, sealed the set for the Jayhawks, 25-23.
The Cougars never led in either the first or third sets, aside from scoring the opening point in the final frame, and lost 25-14 and 25-16.
The tone was set early in the match, as Kansas freshman outside hitter Logan Bell opened with a dominant service run, delivering nine straight points, including two aces. When Houston finally broke the streak and earned a chance to serve, senior libero Alana Torres-Rivera committed a service error, immediately giving momentum back to the Jayhawks.
Though the Cougars committed just three service errors compared to Kansas’ nine, each came at a critical moment.
Houston has now been swept in four of its seven conference matches, posting a 1-6 record that places the team 14th in the 15-team Big 12. Their lone win came against Texas Tech, the only team still winless in conference play.
The Cougars will face Arizona on Oct. 19 at Fertitta Center.
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