On Saturday, the Hawks managed to take another set from a top three team, But this time the Jayhawks and coach Ray Bechard did not sound as enthused after the match.

Kansas (7-6) fell to No. 3 Texas (8-2) at the Horejsi Family Athletic Center in four sets, winning the second set before losing two consecutive sets to close out the match.

The Hawks had also managed to win one set in their match against No. 2 Nebraska on Wednesday.

“I wish we were still out there,” Bechard said right after the match. “The last three or four matches, it’s been a slow start.”

Slow could be an understatement for the Jayhawks. They have lost the first set of every Big 12 match this season, and Saturday was no different. Kansas lost 25-14 and they had just as many kills, seven, as errors.

“Once again you get down to a really good team 0-1, and then it’s an uphill struggle,” Bechard said.

Texas came out on fire, with a .429 hitting percentage. It looked as if it was going to be another long night for Kansas, but once again it took a first-set dismantling to wake up the Jayhawks.

While the Hawks won their second set, they began it with a shaky start. After starting the set down 1-5, Kansas fought back behind sophomore outside hitter Jenna Kaiser and junior and senior middle blockers Brittany Williams and Natalie Uhart.

Kansas was able to extend its lead to a match-high four points at 17-13, eventually winning the set 25-20 on a Williams kill.

But as with the Nebraska match, it went downhill from there. The Jayhawks lost the next two sets, though they fought admirably in the fourth set, losing 25-23.

“We had some people who struggled offensively tonight,” Bechard said, noting sophomore outside hitter Karina Garlington’s season-low four kills. “And when you do that you have to find some other ways to help the team.”

And down the stretch, it was just too much of the Longhorns’ junior All-American outside hitter Destinee Hooker, who finished off the fourth set with four straight kills, bringing her total to 20.

Although they neutralized the rest of the Longhorns’ offensive attack, the Jayhawks just could not muster up enough offense to take more than one set, something Bechard said he was not happy with.

“We’re not taking a pat on the back for taking Texas to four games,” Bechard said. “That wasn’t our goal tonight.”

Bechard’s players feel the same way, with Uhart ready for the team to get rid of the slow starts.

“It’s disappointing. It’s like we’re tasting victory,” Uhart said. “It’s hard on us losing that last set by two points.”

With Garlington’s bad game, it was at least nice for Bechard to see freshmen setter Nicole Tate continue to show signs of improvement. Tate had four kills to go along with three aces, as she used a short serve to get the Longhorns off balance during the second set.

“We saw that playing the ball short would probably help us out,” Tate said. “Coach just gave me the go, and I just did what I could.”

But once Texas figured out the short serve, the Longhorns regained their advantage.

Even as a freshman, Tate knows that no matter how daunting an opponent is, the victories have to come.

“We should of came out and performed a lot better than we did because losing is just getting unacceptable right now,” Tate said.