It could be the spark every program on the rise needs  a stunning victory in a hostile environment against an opponent against which it has had minimal success.

Kansas University’s volleyball program might have turned that corner on Wednesday when it beat No. 23-ranked Colorado in five games at Boulder in front of 718 shocked CU fans.

“It was amazing,” said sophomore Ashley Michaels, who recorded a career-high 17 kills in the match, “because we’ve never won at their place. We came in as underdogs, we were down certain points in the game and we fought back.”

With momentum and confidence on its side, KU (10-1 overall, 2-1 in the Big 12) looks to continue its roll at 7 tonight against Texas Tech at Horejsi Center.

“We’ve had some extremely tight, contested games with Tech in the last few years that haven’t gone our way,” KU coach Ray Bechard said. “We lost a five-game match with them last year at home. The year before that we lost a five-game match with them at home.”

Texas Tech comes to Lawrence sporting a 6-5 overall record, including a 1-1 conference mark. The Red Raiders lost to national powerhouse Nebraska on Wednesday in Lubbock, Texas.

“They’re very balanced offensively,” Bechard said. “They compete extremely hard on every point. It will be a battle.”

Bechard will no doubt be looking for some success against the Red Raiders, a team he owns a modest 2-6 record against. Then again, he had a 2-6 mark against Colorado before Wednesday’s victory.