Truman's Tales
Fansided

Mizzou volleyball dominates Texas State in first round of NCAA tournament

The girls dominate in Dallas to open the tournament and will face host SMU

BySeth Schwartzberg|
The NCAA national championship volleyball trophy was on display during the Louisville versus Wisconsin volleyball match at the AVCA First Serve Showcase at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky. on Aug. 27, 2024
The NCAA national championship volleyball trophy was on display during the Louisville versus Wisconsin volleyball match at the AVCA First Serve Showcase at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky. on Aug. 27, 2024 | Sam Upshaw Jr./Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Mizzou volleyball punched its ticket to the second round of the NCAA tournament Thursday with a sweep over Texas State, beating them 25-16, 25-22, 25-22.

A mix of good defense and too many errors from the Bobcats was one of the biggest factors in the match. Texas State was held to just a .063 hitting percentage in the first set and a .080 for the match, along with 20 team errors.

The Tigers came out firing, with grad-transfer Mychael Vernon leading the charge. They opened the set by jumping ahead 6-2, with three points from Vernon’s kills and the other three from Bobcat errors. After the teams traded a few points back and forth, the Tigers went on a 7-1 run to lead 15-6. Texas State answered with a 5-1 run to close the gap to six, but Mizzou was not backing down. More back-and-forth play continued before a 4-1 run, capped by another Bobcat error, ended the set, giving the Tigers a 25-16 win and a 1-0 lead.

The teams traded points to begin the second set, with the Tigers taking a 10-9 lead after a kill from junior Janet deMarrais and an ace from senior Kiaraliz Perez Catala. Neither team was able to establish a lead until a 6-1 run by the Tigers, including two more deMarrais kills and three Bobcat errors, gave them their largest lead of the set, going up 22-17. The Bobcats didn’t go down without a fight, though. After the Tigers’ run, Texas State responded with three straight points to close the gap to two. It wasn’t enough, however, as the Bobcats' fifth attack error of the set gave the Tigers a 25-22 win and a 2-0 lead.

Mizzou entered the third set looking to close the door, and that’s exactly what they did. But, like the second set, it wasn’t easy. The teams continued trading points early before a 11-2 run by Texas State, including three Mizzou attack errors, put the Bobcats up 15-8. Now playing from behind, head coach Dawn Sullivan made a change, and whatever she did worked like a charm. A Vernon kill kicked off the Tigers’ run, winning the next five points and five of the next six to bring themselves back within one. The Bobcats responded with a service ace before a kill from senior Jordan Iliff and another attack error tied the set at 17. The teams went back and forth before the Tigers closed out the set and the match with three Vernon kills and two more Texas State errors to take the set 25-22 and the match 3-0.

Vernon was the star of the show in this match. She led the team with 20 kills while also adding six digs and a .313 hitting percentage. Iliff and deMarrais were also key to the Tiger offense, recording 11 and nine kills, respectively. The final offensive contributor was grad transfer Colleen Finney, who recorded seven kills and a .545 hitting percentage.

The next matchup for the Tigers is against second-seeded SMU, which enters the tournament ranked 10th in the nation. Led by outside hitters Maya Tabron and Naya Shime, they are a team strong on defense, recording 21 block attempts against Wichita State and holding them to a .141 hitting percentage.

The match will take place in Dallas, Texas, on Friday at 7 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.

Home/Missouri Tigers