2017: Missouri Tigers’ 5 best performers of fall sports
By Josh McSwain
The fall of 2017 saw many great individual performances from Missouri Tiger athletes. It is tough to limit this list to just five, as we have seen football make its first bowl game in three seasons; the volleyball team went to the “Sweet 16” for the second straight season; there’s more hype around both basketball teams than we have seen in years, and another great campaign, so far, from the wrestling team.
5. Sophie Cunningham, Women’s Basketball
A few years ago, the women’s basketball team was dreadful. Now, they are one of the top teams in the country in arguably the toughest conference in the country. The SEC has current national champions South Carolina, national runner-up Mississippi State and perennial power Tennessee.
But Mizzou has become a force in this conference and currently ranks 11th, nationally. Cunningham has led the team over the past two years and is only getting better.
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The junior from Rock Bridge High School in Columbia has improved on her mark from last season and 17.5 points per game, to 18.3 this season. She scored 989 in her first two seasons, which is the second most in program history.
Last year, she was named first team All-SEC and was an honorable mention All-American. She was also named Player of the Week last February in the SEC, and named Freshman of the Year two years ago.
This season, Mizzou has defeated the reigning champion Gamecocks and have only lost two games – a four-point loss to LSU and a three-point loss to Western Kentucky. The Tigers made the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season and figure to go further this season.