All losses hurt, but Kansas University’s five-game loss to Texas Tech on Saturday delivered a punch to the gut.

“It’s rough, guys. It’s rough. ” KU coach Ray Bechard said. “This is very disappointing.”

Kansas and Texas Tech entered the match with the same Big 12 and overall records, but the Red Raiders jumped the Jayhawks (10-12, 3-10) in the conference standings with the victory at Horejsi Family Athletics Center. Making the situation more dire, KU plays three of its next four on the road.

“Everybody’s bummed out,” KU sophomore Savannah Noyes said.

With the match tied at two games apiece, things unraveled for KU in Game Five. Tech scored eight in a row en route to winning, 15-9. Bechard called two timeouts during the game but could not halt the Red Raiders’ momentum.

“You can’t give up an eight-point run in a 15-point game and expect to have success,” Bechard said. “You’ve got to be very clean and very efficient.”

Senior Jamie Mathewson, who had a team-high 23 digs, said she would counsel her team.

“You just have to tell people that November’s a new month,” she said. “We can turn a lot around. There’s a lot of games left even though it doesn’t feel like it.”

And KU did have some bright spots. Noyes, Jana Correa, Emily Brown, Brittany Williams and Megan Hill registered double-digit kills. KU blocked three times as many shots as Tech. Noyes had one of the best matches of her college career, recording a team-high 23 kills.

“We went to her over and over,” Bechard said. “We found something we really liked.”

After winning Game One, 30-27, and losing Game Two, 30-28, KU put on an impressive performance to close out Game Three by scoring 10 of the last 11 points.

“Everything was working,” Mathewson said. “We were passing well. We were getting balls to our hitters, and our hitters were just being aggressive, and that’s what wins games.”

After winning that game 30-22, the Jayhawks lost Game Four, 30-28. In all of Tech’s victories, 6-foot-3 senior Philister Sang played a major role, delivering a game-high 26 kills.

“She’s kind of a rhythm player. When she gets things going, she gets a little more confident,” Bechard said. “She was an All-Big-12 player last year, and she proved why tonight.”

Saturday’s match was “Dig for the Cure” night as the Jayhawks raised money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation through pledges for digs. Many of the KU players wore pink bows or wrist bands in support.

KU totaled an impressive 89 digs – 21 more than Tech -but will have to dig deep if it wants to secure a postseason berth.

“I just challenged the team,” Bechard said. “What’s November going to be like? You need to forget talking about NCAA Tournament, forget talking about this and worry about becoming a better team.”