K-State Volleyball Duo Earns Big 12 Starting Seven Honors
Two Wildcats lead the Big 12’s only undefeated team to an 8-0 start with standout offensive performances.
Key points
- K-State volleyball is 8-0 and the only undefeated team in the Big 12.
- Cadence Lundgren recorded 14 blocks, including a career-high 10 against Creighton.
- Addison Massey posted a collegiate-best 20 kills and 15 digs in a double-double.
The polished wood of the gymnasium floor still holds the ghost of a white ball, suspended in memory after a hard spike. In Manhattan, Kansas, the silence is brief, broken only by the echo of a season that refuses to falter. K-State volleyball stands at the top of the Big 12, an 8-0 record that feels less like a statistic and more like a physical weight, solid and unyielding.
Tuesday brought formal recognition for the duo driving this perfect stretch. Cadence Lundgren and Addison Massey were named to the Big 12 Starting Seven, a nod to their intense contributions in recent road victories. Their performance against No. 20 Creighton, secured in four sets, was the final piece in a puzzle that has left the conference at their feet.
Historic Season Start
This is the second time in program history the Wildcats have begun a season 8-0 before conference play. The last time it happened was in 2012, a span of years that feels distant in the fast-paced world of collegiate athletics. They remain the only undefeated team in the Big 12, a solitary beacon of consistency in a league otherwise marred by early stumbles.
Lundgren’s Blocking Dominance
Lundgren, a sophomore middle blocker, turned her body into a wall over the weekend. She recorded 14 blocks across two matches, a feat that included a career-high 10 against Creighton. She was the only player in the conference to reach double-digit blocks for the week, a stat that speaks to sheer physical dominance at the net.
Her offensive output matched her defensive presence. Lundgren added 13 kills, hitting at a .440 clip. The rhythm of her swings, the precision of her contact, created a rhythm that opponents struggled to disrupt. Her presence shifts the entire geometry of the court, forcing blockers to hesitate and servers to aim away from her zone.
Massey’s Offensive Surge
Addison Massey, a freshman, broke through the ceiling of expectations with a collegiate-best 20 kills against Creighton. It was the first 20-kill game for a Wildcat this season, a milestone that also marked her first career double-double. She paired those kills with 15 digs, a display of stamina and reflex that defines her emerging role.
Over the two matches, Massey totaled 36 kills, 18 digs, and five blocks. Her 4.14 kills per set rank seventh in the Big 12, while her 4.93 points per set sit fourth. The numbers are cold, but the image is vivid: a young player moving with purpose, every touch calculated, every dig a small victory against gravity.
The Big 12 has other contenders, with Kansas and Taylor Stanley earning multiple honors. Stanley took both Offensive Player and Rookie of the Week, while KU’s Reese Messer also made the Starting Seven. But for K-State, the focus is narrow: maintaining this perfect record as conference play begins Thursday at UCF.
