June 15, 2005

COLUMBIA, Mo. - Coming off its fifth-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, the University of Missouri Volleyball team continued their successes with a strong spring season. The squad traveled to four tournaments around the United States in March and April, ending the spring season 14-4 overall while going 6-2 against teams that made the 2004 NCAA Tournament field and were ranked in the final AVCA national top 25.

"We were real pleased by how our team performed this spring," said Wayne Kreklow, Associate Head Coach. "I think overall as a team we grew stronger and many of our individuals did as well. We wanted to prepare our team for the upcoming fall with a tough tournament schedule, and I think we did that, and accomplished some good things in the process. Our girls and our coaching staff are very excited about the upcoming fall."

The spring season started with a March 12 tournament at Louisville, Ky. Using a four-game format, the Tigers swept Florida, a team that ended the 2004 season with a No. 15 ranking and a trip to NCAA's round of 32. The Tigers played host No. 16 Louisville to four-closely contested matches, dropping the series, 3-1.

The Tigers next traveled to San Diego, Calif., on April 2nd, coming away with a sweep through a tournament that included three nationally-ranked programs that also traveled to the NCAA's Second Round or beyond in 2004. The team registered wins over No. 12 San Diego, No. 21 UC-Santa Barbara, and No. 22 Arizona, all ending in 2-1 advantages for the Tigers.

On April 16, the Tigers engaged in a four-team tournament in Knoxville, Tenn. Against host school and sweet 16 entrant Tennessee, the Tigers came away with a win, taking down the No. 10 Lady Vols, 2-1. The Tigers won 2-1 over Duke before the Tennessee match-up and lost to Notre Dame 2-1 in the final match of the tournament.

The final tournament of the spring came at Illinois on April 23, where the Tigers came away with eight wins and two losses. The team played two matches against five opponents on the day, sweeping series against Valparaiso, Southern Illinois, and junior college ICC. Marquette and Illinois would split with the Tigers.

The Tigers ended the 2004 season with a 20-9 overall record, a third-place Big 12 standing with a 14-6 conference record, a second trip to the NCAA Second Round, and a final USA Today/CSTV AVCA ranking of 24th in the country.

With a huge core of the team's contingent returning for the 2005 season, the Tigers will be in a great position to make their sixth-consecutive run to the NCAA Tournament. The team's home schedule will get underway September 2nd, as the Tigers host the Tennessee Lady Vols in the first game of the three-day Tiger Invitational.

For more information on Missouri Volleyball, visit mutigers.com.