Hudson Becomes WKU All-Time Single-Sport Wins Leader with Sweep Over Missouri State

WKU Athletics Media Release

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Volleyball (9-6; 3-0 CUSA) defeated Missouri State (11-4; 2-1 CUSA) in three sets Friday evening inside E.A. Diddle Arena.

The win marks the 816th of head coach Travis Hudson’s decorated career, making him the all-time single sport wins leader in WKU history. In the third set, the Hilltoppers fell behind 19-14 but closed out the frame on an 11-3 run to earn the sweep, the fifth for WKU this season.

HOW IT HAPPENED
WKU 3, MSU 0
SET ONE – WKU 25, MSU 18

Sonja Laaksonen and Faith Young stuffed a block for the first Hilltopper point. WKU added two more for a three-point margin. The first ace of the day, this off the hand of Alivia Skidmore, gave WKU a four-point lead. Kaira Knox added a kill to force a Bear timeout, leading 9-4. The second kill for Eliza McKnight pushed WKU into double digits, still holding the five-point edge. Young and Knox logged the ninth and 10th kills of the frame, extending the edge to eight at 13-5. WKU led by seven at the media timeout. Missouri State cut the lead down to three, forcing a WKU timeout at 18-15. Two straight, capped by the second ace from Skidmore forced the second Bear timeout, now up 20-15. Kate Rush connected with Young for the first Hilltopper set point, holding a six-point edge. Young and Rush stuffed the third block of the frame to close the door, winning 25-18.

SET TWO – WKU 25, MSU 22

Much like the first frame, WKU jumped out to a three-point lead in the early goings, via a pair of kills and a block. Now up one, Young and Rush combined for a block to push the lead back to two. Izzy Van De Wiele entered and immediately joined Skidmore to stuff the third WKU block of the frame for an 8-5 lead. The Bears were first to 10, aided by a 4-0 run, holding a one-point edge. An attack error evened up the score, but a 3-0 run forced a WKU timeout, trailing 13-10. The first ace for Knox capped a 3-0 Hilltopper run to tie things up. Even at 18 all, a Bear attack error gave WKU a one-point lead, forcing a Missouri State timeout. The first kill for Van De Wiele pushed the Tops past 20, holding a one-point edge. The sixth kill for McKnight followed by another errant attack forced Missouri State into their second timeout with WKU holding a 23-20 lead. Young fired off a pair of kills to give WKU a two-set lead, taking the second frame by a score of 25-22.

SET THREE – WKU 25, MSU 22

The Bears claimed the first point of the third before an errant serve evened the score. Skidmore pushed her kill total to five to tie things up at five. A 3-0 Bear run ensued, leading to the first Hilltopper timeout, down 8-5. Knox fired a kill and combined with Van De Wiele for a block to pull within one. The Bears broke 10 first, holding a two-point edge. A long rally ended on a Bear attack error to push WKU into double digits, still down two. Missouri State led 15-12 at the media timeout. Out of the break, the Bears grabbed their largest lead of the night at 19-14, forcing the Tops to burn a timeout. Three straight errors led to a Missouri State timeout as WKU pulled within two, down 19-17. Another Bear attack error followed by straight kills from Young gave WKU its first lead, 20-19, forcing the second timeout. WKU added to the lead with the ninth total block of the night. The 23rd WKU point came by way of a Laaksonen kill. Skidmore’s kill gave WKU set point and Young served up an ace to close the door for a sweep. The Hilltoppers closed out the final frame on an 11-3 run.

NOTABLES

• Travis Hudson earned his 816th win at the helm of Hilltopper Volleyball, surpassing Joel Murrie (815) as the single sport all-time wins leader in WKU Athletics history. E.A. Diddle is the all-time wins leader in WKU Athletics history with 1,029 (759 Men’s Basketball, 232 Baseball, 38 Football).
• Faith Young headlined action for WKU on Friday, finishing with 10 kills on 21 attacks with no errors for a .476 hitting clip. The junior added five blocks, four digs, and ended the match with her first ace.
• Kaira Knox also tallied 10 kills along with seven digs, an ace, and a block.
• Eliza McKnight led WKU in hitting, logging a .615 mark, connecting for eight kills on 13 attacks. The freshman added two assists and a block.
• Izzy Van De Wiele added a significant presence at the net, stuffing three blocks.
• Tayler Baron finished with 14 digs to lead WKU in the category alongside three assists.
• Kate Rush led the assisting efforts Friday, finishing with 36. The setter added six digs, two blocks, and a kill.
• Sonja Laaksonen and Alivia Skidmore both managed two blocks each. Skidmore added eight kills offensively along with a team best two aces while Laaksonen finished with five.
• WKU logged a .318 hitting percentage while holding Missouri State to a season low .145 mark.
• The Hilltoppers have hit .300 or better in seven matches this season. They are 6-1 in those instances.
• Friday marks WKU’s fifth sweep of the 2026 campaign.

QUOTABLES

“People use the term ‘they put their heart and soul into something’, I don’t think there’s anything that could be more accurate. I have put my heart and soul into this place for the last 30-plus years and feel very blessed that I’ve been able to stay here and turn this into something that people are proud of.” – Head Coach Travis Hudson on becoming the single sport all-time wins leader in WKU history

“We are starting to show some grit after that win at New Mexico State last weekend, but I’d sure like to show grit a little bit less if we could stay out of our own way. We took that last timeout, and we knew if we could get on a run from the service line, we’d have a chance, and Tayler Baron did that for us.” – Hudson on the come from behind third set win

NEXT UP

WKU hosts Missouri State on Saturday, Oct. 3. First serve is set for 1 p.m. CT and will be streaming on ESPN+. Tickets can be purchased HERE.

2026 CONFERENCE USA CHAMPIONSHIP

The 2026 CUSA Volleyball Tournament is coming to Bowling Green, Ky. Action from E.A. Diddle Arena runs Friday-Sunday, Nov. 20-22. Tickets will go on sale starting October 15.