Volleyball match will be part of festival-like Saturday
 
Volleyball match will be part of festival-like Saturday
  
 
Volleyball Match Versus Tech Will Be Part of Festive Saturday

Tigers look for third straight, will precede football game

Oct. 5, 2007

Texas Tech at
Missouri
October 6, 2007, 2:00pm

Missouri Volleyball
hosts Texas Tech

Quick Links

Multimedia

  • Radio: KCOU, 88.1 FM, in Columbia, commentators: Willie Springer
  • Mizzou All-Access (subscription required), commentators: Willie Springer
  • GameTracker

Coaches

  • Missouri (9-6, 2-4 Big 12): Wayne Kreklow (Drake '80), 319-53 overall (9th year), 52-24 at Mizzou (3rd year), 161-70 at with wife at Mizzou (8th year), 12-2 vs Texas Tech
  • Texas Tech (7-9, 1-6 Big 12): Nancy Todd (Arizona State, 1995), 51-80 overall (5th year), 51-80 at Texas Tech (5th year), 0-8 vs Missouri

Series Matchup

  • Missouri has defeated Texas Tech in nine straight matches, earning sweeps in the past three. 

  • The last time the Tigers lost to the Red Raiders was in 2002 at Lubbock, Texas. 

  • Missouri leads the all-time series 12-11, and is 7-4 in games played in Columbia between these two squads. 

Of Note

  • Under the Kreklows, the Tigers are 12-2 against the Red Raiders and have won the last three in sweeps.
  • The Tigers have been 9-6 one other time in school history, in 1977 … in the next match that year, Mizzou lost to Minnesota 2-1.
  • Something about these string of dates has been all out of whack … going into the Colorado match, Mizzou was 0-3 all time versus CU on October 3 … well, to add to that, Mizzou is 3-8 all time on October 6, but last won when the date fell in 2004 … Don’t you just love these?
  • And, since its seems the trend these days, the squads are 1-1 against each other in five-gamers, last playing one in Lubbock in 2005.

COLUMBIA, Mo.— The tailgate scene will be jumping Saturday in the areas surrounding Faurot Field in anticipation of the 8:15 p.m., kickoff between the Mizzou and Nebraska football squads. But, the air is also expected to be electric next door in the Hearnes Center, as starting at 2 p.m., the Missouri volleyball team (9-6, 2-4 Big 12) will look to extend its winning streak to three matches in hosting Texas Tech (7-9, 1-6 Big 12). Rebounding from a tough conference start, Mizzou has placed themselves in a tie for sixth place with Kansas entering the weekend and have a stretch of five-of-its-next-six at home. Admission to the match is free as the Hearnes Center will be open all day for fans.

Boulder Was and Is Home to Tigers’ Front Range
The Missouri volleyball team (9-6, 2-4 Big 12) won another five game thriller Wednesday night, taking the match over Colorado in Boulder, 30-20, 30-19, 26-30, 28-30, 15-9. Freshman Weiwen Wang (Nanjing, China) was nearly unstoppable on the night, recording school records in blocks in a match (13) and most kills without an error (19). In addition, Weiwen added two service aces and six digs.

Weiwen also recorded the second-highest hitting percentage (.559, 19-0-34) all-time in a Tiger five-game match.

“I just tried my best to be as active as possible in the position,” said Weiwen. “The records were definitely unexpected. I just went out and did my job.”

Former Tiger Christi Myers held the previous school records in both the blocks-in-a-match (12) category and most-kills-without-an-error (17) stat.

As a team, Mizzou racked 24 blocks on the evening, a Tiger school record in the Big 12 era, and it was the most since the Tiger school record of 26 was set on September 29, 1987 in a win at Saint Louis. In addition, it was the most blocks in a Tiger conference match since October 25, 1985 when Mizzou scored on 25 blocks at Oklahoma.

Sophomore Megan Wilson was part of 10 of the blocks, becoming the eighth Tiger in Mizzou history to record a double-digit block total, and the first (other than Weiwen) since her sister, Nicole Wilson recorded 11 blocks in a win at Kansas State on October 8, 2003. Wilson also added 13 kills for her first career double-double.
 
Not to be outdone, Tiger setter Lei Wang (Shanghai, China) just missed her second-consecutive triple double with 34 assists, 12 digs, and nine kills, adding three blocks and an ace. On Saturday versus Oklahoma, Lei recorded Mizzou’s third triple double in 16 years.

Senior Na Yang was next for the Tigers with 16 kills, adding 13 digs and five blocks. Sophomore Amanda Hantouli tied a career best with 13 kills.

Senior Tatum Ailes tied her season best with 29 digs.

Colorado (5-9, 0-6 Big 12), who has now lost five conference matches in five-game fashion was led by Alex Buth’s 19 kills.

EXTRA-EXTRA NOTES:

  • Maybe the best predictor of Mizzou’s play so far has been the blocking … Mizzou is now 7-1 on the season when outblocking its opponents.
  • The Tigers have had difficulty in game threes so far this conference season, going only 1-5 in the frame … in addition, Mizzou has a losing record of 7-8 in the third stanza this year and have dropped four straight.
  • That was already Mizzou’s seventh five-game match of the season, matching last year’s entire total … Mizzou has played five games in three-of-its-last-four matches … by the way, the school record for most fivers in a season is 10, set in 1985 (4-6).

 Last Time We Met … Missouri-Texas Tech, Senior Night ‘06
November 24, 2006
The night began on an emotional note for the Missouri volleyball Tigers as the three outgoing seniors were recognized by the crowd of 2,024. Once Lei Wang took the first serve though, it was all business as Missouri (17-12, 11-9) dominated Texas Tech (12-17, 5-15) in the first game on their way to a sweep 30-15, 30-28, 30-25.

Jessica Vander Kooi (Hinton, Iowa) led Mizzou with 12 kills and three service aces and five blocks. Vander Kooi, at that point, had recorded 10 kills or more in 110 of 118 matches in her career. Na Yang (Shan Dong, China) had 11 kills on .417 hitting, and five blocks on the night. Nicole Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) had nine kills and three blocks. Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) had 11 kills on the evening and Lei Wang (Shanghai, China) had 37 assists. Abbie Booth (Kansas City, Mo.) had seven digs, two assists and one service ace in her final home game.

"It was great to win after having a tough couple weeks," Booth said. "We came out happy with the win."

Kreklow was thankful for all the seniors have brought to the team and was happy they were able to get a win on senior night.

"Those three have meant a great deal to the program, not only on the court, but also leadership-wise," Kreklow said. "They did a great job on campus representing the university, and it's going to be hard to replace them."

Philister Sang led Texas Tech with 17 kills and 10 digs.

Scouting Texas Tech …
The Texas Tech Red Raiders conclude their two-game road trip with a trip to Columbia to face the Tigers this Saturday.  The Red Raiders have struggled this season, going just 7-9 (1-6 Big 12) so far this year.  Texas Tech won their first conference game of the season at home against Colorado in five games, but has since dropped six in a row to fall to 10th place in the Big 12.

The Red Raiders have struggled mightily this year, ranking in the bottom third of every major statistical category.  Despite that, Texas Tech has two players ranked in the top 10 of the conference in hitting percentage.  Senior Emily Ziegler is ranked 8th in the conference with a .362 hitting percentage, while Alicia Ostmeyer, also a senior, is ranked 10th, hitting .342.  Ziegler is also ranked 9th in the Big 12 in assists, averaging 10.75 assists per game over 64 games this season.  Sophomore Jenn Harrell is ranked 6th in the conference with an average of 4.05 digs per game. 

Despite losing six straight in conference, two of those came against #1 Nebraska and #7 Texas.  They also lost to Kansas, who is tied for sixth in the Big 12, and Iowa State, who is ranked fourth in the conference.  They are one of only three NCAA teams this year to send Texas to more than three games.

Missouri has defeated Texas Tech in nine straight matches, earning sweeps in the past three.  The last time the Tigers lost to the Red Raiders was in 2002 at Lubbock, Texas.  Missouri leads the all-time series 12-11, and is 7-4 in games played in Columbia between these two squads. 

-- Steve Keers

  • Under the Kreklows, the Tigers are 12-2 against the Red Raiders and have won the last three in sweeps.
  • The Tigers have been 9-6 one other time in school history, in 1977 … in the next match that year, Mizzou lost to Minnesota 2-1.
  • Something about these string of dates has been all out of whack … going into the Colorado match, Mizzou was 0-3 all time versus CU on October 3 … well, to add to that, Mizzou is 3-8 all time on October 6, but last won when the date fell in 2004 … Don’t you just love these?
  • And, since its seems the trend these days, the squads are 1-1 against each other in five-gamers, last playing one in Lubbock in 2005.

Klein’s ACL is a Sideliner
The results from an MRI test conducted on September 10 came back with unsavory results as Mizzou OH sophomore Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) was diagnosed with a torn ACL in her left knee which was a result of an injury suffered in a September 8 match versus Houston in San Marcos, Texas.

In the third of four games against Houston, with the Tigers up 20-12, Klein went to attack a ball and then came down in pain.

Klein was leading Mizzou with 4.44 kills per game, up from her 2.75 average her freshman season and stood fourth in the Big 12 in the category. In addition, Klein’s defense showed much improvement as her digs-per-game shot from 0.75 her frosh campaign to 2.85 this season, resulting in the first five kill-dig double-doubles of her career. Along with leading Mizzou with 0.48 service aces per game, Klein was third in the Big 12 with 5.30 points per game, behind only 2006 National Player of the Year Sarah Pavan of Nebraska and All-American Destinee Hooker of Texas.

Despite not playing in the final match of the CenturyTel Premier against host Texas State, Klein was named the tournament’s MVP, scoring 5.67 kills per game on a .342 hitting strike for the Tigers while adding 3.33 digs per game and scoring 6.67 points per game.

Klein was also named to Ole Miss’ Magnolia Classic All-Tournament team, opening the season with a career-best 26 kills against the Rebels.

Milestone Watch

  • Along with her top five pursuit in career kills, Yang is also seventh all-time in points with 1,342, 184 away from taking fifth from Nicole Wilson.
  • Senior Tatum Ailes already holds the Mizzou all-time record in digs with 1,698, but how high will the bar be set? … against Texas on September 15, Ailes became the 17th Tiger to play in their 100th match at Mizzou.
  • Sophomore Amanda Hantouli quietly keeps creeping up Mizzou’s all-time blocks per game list … since she became eligible for the category earlier this season, she has crept from eighth all time to her current standing of third all-time with 0.90 blocks per game and is just a smaller fraction from Krista Johnson, who now is fourth on the list (0.8892) … in the last five matches, Hantouli has scored 1.05 bpg.

Schedule Change
The Tigers’ match versus Baylor, originally scheduled for Saturday, November 3, has been moved to Friday, November 2. The match time will remain at 6:30 p.m.

Television For Iowa State’s Visit to Columbia
The November 14 volleyball match in the Hearnes Center between the Missouri Tigers and the Iowa State Cyclones will be televised on the Mizzou Sports Network. FSN Midwest will air the match live in Mid-Missouri and St. Louis while those in Kansas City can catch live action on MetroSports.

The Wednesday match is slated for a 6:30 p.m., start, and will be the third televised match of the season.

FSN Midwest and FSN Rocky Mountain will air live coverage of Mizzou’s match at Colorado on October 3 while CSTV will air live coverage of the Tigers’ visit to Nebraska on October 31.

Big 12 Report
Prior to Wednesday matches
The Missouri Tigers came into last week still looking for their first conference victory.  Unfortunately, their trip to Manhattan, Kansas to face Kansas State didn’t provide the Tigers with that defeat, as the Wildcats swept Missouri 3-0.  Looking to avoid its first 0-5 start since 1997, the Tigers welcomed # 25 Oklahoma to Columbia.  The Tigers got their first conference victory, outlasting the Sooners 3-2, in a match full of amazing plays.  Missouri travels to Boulder to face the Buffs, in a game which will be broadcast on FSN Midwest.  The Tigers then welcome Texas Tech to Columbia for a Saturday matinee. 

Baylor will try to break a three game losing streak this week, after being swept by both Texas A&M and Nebraska.  Baylor only plays one game this week, hosting Texas Tech on Wednesday, before traveling to instate rival Texas the next week.  After going 6-3 in the preseason, Baylor has stumbled out of the conference gates, going 1-5. 

The Colorado Buffs continue to struggle this year, as they have dropped all of their first five Big 12 matches.  A bright spot for the Buffs this year, has been that four of their five losses have gone to five games, showing the team’s competitveness.  Last week, the team dropped decisions to both Oklahoma, in five, and were swept by Texas.  Both matches were on the road.  After hosting the Missouri Tigers on Wednesday, the Buffs welcome top ranked Nebraska to Boulder.  Colorado was the only team to defeat national champion Nebraska last season.

Iowa State won its only match last week, defeating Texas Tech in four games.  The Cyclones’ upcoming stretch could determine how their season might go, as they face Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Kansas State in a row.  The middle two away matches are sandwiched by the two home matches.

After being swept by Nebraska, Kansas looks to redeem itself as it travels to Iowa State and hosts Texas A&M. 

After sweeping Missouri at home, the Kansas State Wildcats traveled to Texas A&M to face the Aggies.  In a close match, Kansas State defeated A&M three games to one.  Kansas State hosts two of the top teams in the conference in the nation this week, as it travels to Nebraska for a CSTV broadcast match and hosts Texas.

# 1 and undefeated Nebraska continued its dominance by sweeping both Kansas and Baylor last week.  The Huskers have swept all of their opponents, except for UCLA, which is the only  team to have taken a game from Nebraska.  The Huskers will be looking for revenge this week, as they travel to the pnly team that beat them last year, Colorado, while also hosting Kansas State.

Oklahoma split their two matches last week, defeating Colorado three games to two, while dropping a five game heartbreaker to Missouri.  The Sooner will go out of conference for a Wednesday night matchup with TCU, before hosting Iowa State.

Texas went 2-0 in its matches this past week, beating in state rivals Texas Tech three games to one, while sweeping Colorado.  The Longhorns face Texas A&M on a game broadcast live on ESPNU, before traveling to Manhattan, Kansas to face the Kansas State Wildcats. 

-- Mike Wojtychiw

Notes to Keep in Mind … 2006 Revisited

  • The Tigers are coming off a 2006 campaign that included a seventh-consecutive birth to the NCAA Tournament. As a result, Mizzou and Nebraska are now the only programs in the Big 12 Conference to have made the post-season every year since 2000.
  • Mizzou won their first-round matchup in the tournament for the third-straight year in 2006, knocking off No. 21 Santa Clara in a three-game sweep in Palo Alto, Calif. The Tigers forced eventual national runner-up Stanford to a five-game thriller in the second round on the Cardinal’s home floor, coming back from a game down and 16-10 deficit in the fourth stanza to produce a fifth-game.
  • Despite an 18-13 final record in 2006, the end-of-the-season surge produced a No. 21 final ranking in the AVCA Top 25, marking Mizzou’s third-straight year among the nation’s best. Only 15 teams have been sited on at least the last three final national polls.

Preseason Impressions
The coaches of the Big 12 picked Mizzou to finish third in the Big 12 Conference this season. Defending National and Conference Champion Nebraska was picked to win for the fourth-straight year. Texas was voted second. Truth-be-told, the voting for the third through ninth spots was incredibly close. Right on the Tigers’ heels (or tail) in the voting was Texas A&M and Colorado.  Iowa State and Kansas State were very close in voting as well. Oklahoma, finished second in the league last year, is picked ninth this season. It should be a very interesting season in the league.

The national impression of the league is also striking. Nebraska was the coaches’ preseason pick to at national No. 1. Texas is also expected to have a big year, they ranked 4th in the preseason national poll. The Tigers had a No. 20 preseason ranking with Oklahoma, mentioned earlier that they were picked to finish ninth in the league, had a No. 22 preseason standing, ending the 2006 season with a No. 12 ranking. Texas A&M, Colorado, and Iowa State all received votes in the poll. 

Senior Salute
At no time in Mizzou volleyball history have players entered the season with as much playing experience in the NCAA Tournament as seniors Tatum Ailes and Na Yang. Helping the Tigers to their seventh-postseason run in 2006, both Yang and Ailes have played eight NCAA Tournament matches in their previous three years at Mizzou which includes a run to the field’s round of eight in 2005.

Both Ailes and Yang were named to this season’s Preseason All-Big 12 team, and for Ailes, she became the first defensive player in league history to earn such an honor.

Ailes (Bellevue, Neb.) returns for her senior campaign fresh from an appearance on Team USA's A2-national training team this spring and returns to the team having been the Tigers' starting libero for three seasons. Meanwhile, Ailes has already made a lasting impression on the Mizzou program as the squad's all-time leader in digs and digs per game. In 2005, the coaches of the Big 12 named Ailes as Libero of the Year.

Yang (Shan Dong, China) is in her senior campaign as well and has an accomplished record from her previous three years at Mizzou. Yang has shown prowess during the regular season, but her numbers in the post-season are the outside-hitter's bread-and-butter. In eight NCAA Tournament matches, Yang has averaged 4.10 kills per game on a .304 hitting percentage.

Sophomore Surge
A very large, and important, piece of this year’s puzzle is four returning Tigers in their second year of eligibility. The Class of ’09 will vital in Mizzou’s “Unleashing”.

Setter Lei Wang is already going into her second full year of leading the Tiger offense, coming off a successful frosh season in leading the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament with a 12.46 assists per game, 2.39 digs per game, and 0.98 points per game average. During the Big 12 season, Wang averaged 12.86 assists per game, ranking fifth in the league. Wang recorded 63 assists in the five-game NCAA second-round match at Stanford and was a crucial component of the Tiger game-four comeback, as Mizzou hit nearly .500 (13-2-24) from when the Tigers were down 16-10 to when Mizzou won the frame 30-25.

Keota, Iowa, native Julianna Klein stepped up during her true freshman season, finding a starting role in 18 matches last season. Klein scored 10-or-more kills in 16 matches last season, including scoring a season-high 21 kills versus Baylor on September 27. Against Stanford in the NCAA second round, Klein carded 14 kills and six digs. In addition, Klein’s serve caught several opponents off guard early in the year as she scored 18 of her 23 aces from the season in the first 11 matches. Klein racked seven aces in an early-season tournament match against Villanova.

Amanda Hantouli started 25 matches last season as a redshirt freshman, finding her first playing time since an ACL injury sidelined the Omaha, Neb., native during her senior year in high school. Now a sophomore, Hantouli contributed 10-or-more kills in four contests and five-or-more blocks in six matches last season. Her play against Stanford in the NCAA second round gave many a picture into the possible future as she scored 10 kills on 15 attempts (.533), adding three blocks.

Megan Wilson will likely see quite a bit of playing time as a right-side hitter this season. The 6-2 sophomore from Lincoln, Neb., exposed much talent as a server as well last season. Against Stanford in the NCAA second round, Wilson added three crucial aces and served many points in efforts to throw the Cardinal offense. Wilson had three matches in 2006 with two-or-more aces.

Sparkling and New
This year’s incoming freshman class will get much experience, very early. Unlike the class before that had three use redshirt seasons to refine their skills, this Class of 2010 will see time immediately.

Newcomer Caitlyn Vann comes to Mizzou from Muncie, Ind., and Burris High School. Vann, along with fellow newcomer Catie Wilson, was one of 35 to be named to the inaugural AVCA High School Senior All-American list. Vann was a three-time All-State selection at Burris, earning first-team honors in her junior and senior seasons. While Vann was recruited as a libero, she played as a left-side hitter in her years in high school, tallying 442 kills and 368 digs as team captain in her recently completed senior season. Vann was also a part of USA Volleyball’s Junior National Training Team in 2006 and was before a two-year member of USAV’s Youth National-A2 team.

Weiwen Wang comes to Mizzou from Nanjing, China, and is the fifth Tiger to come from the country. Wang was captain of her national-champion high school team and was a member of her country’s team that won the 2006 World School Volleyball Championship in Porec, Croatia. Wang was also a member of the Chinese 15 & Under Youth National team that took third.

Catie Wilson (no relation to Megan Wilson) comes to Mizzou from Omaha, Neb., and Gross High School. Wilson, along with Vann was named to the AVCA’s inaugural High School Senior All-American Team. In addition, Wilson was a four-time All-State selection, earning first-team honors in her junior and senior seasons.

###


 

 

Vann Tries Out For USA National Team

02/26/2009 - W. Volleyball

Last weekend in Colorado Springs, Colorado, junior setter for the Mizzou Tiger volleyball team, Caitlyn Vann, participated in the USA National Team tryouts.

Volleyball Standout Returns To Mizzou

02/17/2009 - W. Volleyball

In a glass case, adjacent to one of the many entrances in the Hearnes Center, hangs a red, white and blue jersey covered in black ink. Mostly silent and surrounded by memories of the past, the name on the jersey speaks loudly than any piece of memorabilia in that case: Hunter.

Tiger Volleyball Inks Three for `09

11/17/2008 - W. Volleyball

Three have signed National Letters of Intent to play volleyball at the University of Missouri next fall: Paola Ampudia, Kate Harris, and Lindsey Petrick.

Mizzou Volleyball Camps Finalized

01/21/2009 - W. Volleyball

Mizzou will once again offer summer camps for high schoolers interested in learning more about the sport of volleyball.

VB's Post-Season Push Brings No. 13 K-State

11/18/2008 - W. Volleyball

The Mizzou volleyball team has won four straight home matches and three of its last four overall, but No. 13 Kansas State comes to the Hearnes Center Wednesday.