No. 20 Baylor volleyball didn’t just bounce back Thursday - it took control from the middle of the first set on and never let Georgia Tech get comfortable in a 3-0 win at Bob Devaney Sports Center to open the Ameritas Challenge.
The Bears hit a season-best .308 and finished with 47 kills on 104 attacks, a sharp offensive showing that powered them past the previously undefeated Yellow Jackets, 25-22, 25-18, 25-16. It was Baylor’s most efficient night of the season and its best hitting percentage since a .317 mark against Arkansas State in last season’s NCAA Tournament.
Ksenia Rakhmanchik kept leading the way, tying her season high with 19 kills and hitting .333. She has now paced Baylor in kills in all six matches this season.
Bailey Warren added eight kills while hitting a career-best .583, and Nadiya Johnson turned in 10 kills on a career-best .391. Victoria Davis anchored the net with six blocks, while Mya Hemmer posted four blocks for the second straight match.
Isabela Haggard ran the offense with a season-high 37 assists, her most since she had 55 against Louisville in last season’s NCAA Tournament. Tehani Ulufatu led the Bears with 10 digs, her first double-digit dig performance of the year, and Jules Hernandez made the first start of her career while finishing with eight digs.
Baylor had to work through a tight opening set before finally separating late. Georgia Tech led 10-7 before the Bears started closing the gap, and Rakhmanchik’s kill tied it at 17-17.
Hemmer followed with another kill to put Baylor in front, and after the Yellow Jackets drew even again at 21-21, Warren answered with a kill and Davis pushed the Bears to set point. Georgia Tech then sent the final attack error wide, giving Baylor a 25-22 win and the early edge.
The second set looked similar at first, with Baylor taking a quick 2-0 lead before Georgia Tech leveled things at 3-3. Then the Bears ripped off a 5-0 run behind two Rakhmanchik aces, kills from Warren and a Taylor Crain ace to build a 14-8 cushion.
Baylor kept applying pressure and stretched the margin to 19-11 before Georgia Tech tried to make one last push. Rakhmanchik and Warren combined for three of Baylor’s final four points, and Warren finished the set with a kill for a 25-18 Baylor win.
Georgia Tech opened the third set with a 3-1 lead, but Baylor settled in quickly. A 6-0 run turned a 9-9 tie into a 15-9 advantage, with Rakhmanchik putting down two kills and Hemmer adding another during the burst.
The Bears kept control from there, moving ahead 21-12 before Georgia Tech made a late push. Rakhmanchik closed it out with two more kills, including the match-winner, as Baylor finished the sweep 25-16.
The result pushed Baylor to 5-0 on the season when winning the opening set and to 204-24 under Ryan McGuyre in those matches. The Bears are now 94-2 in the McGuyre Era when hitting above .300, and Thursday’s sweep marked Baylor’s first 3-0 win over a team ranked or receiving votes in the AVCA Coaches Poll since 2023.
Baylor returns to action Friday night against No. 1 Nebraska at 7 p.m.
CT in the same tournament, then closes play Saturday at 11 a.m. CT against New Mexico.
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