Mizzou volleyball extends winning streak to six with two road wins

Mizzou volleyball kept its winning streak alive, extending it to six this past weekend on the road. The Tigers defeated Arkansas 3-1 (21-25, 25-18, 25-20, 25-15) on Friday and edged out Oklahoma 3-2 (19-25, 25-18, 25-13, 24-26, 19-17) on Sunday.

Starting in Fayetteville, Arkansas, the Tigers (15-5, 6-2 SEC) opened the weekend against a Razorbacks team that had received votes in the latest AVCA rankings. The match provided the stage for a record-breaking night for graduate transfer Mychael Vernon.

Vernon ended the match with a record-setting 37 kills, surpassing Paola Ampudia’s previous record of 35, set in October 2009. She also contributed 17 digs, finishing third on the team in that category. Vernon now ranks in the top five in the SEC in both kills and kills per set.

The first set remained close for most of the game until a 4-0 run by the Razorbacks put them ahead 19-14. Despite a slight comeback from the Tigers, Arkansas held onto this lead, finishing the set with a 25-21 win to go up 1-0.

With the score tied at 3-3, the Tigers went on a 7-0 run, highlighted by five kills from Vernon and two aces, to jump ahead 11-3. Mizzou maintained the lead for the rest of the set, despite Arkansas narrowing the gap to three points at one stage. The Tigers stayed firm, ultimately winning by seven points. Senior Jordan Iliff, who leads the SEC in aces with 53, ended the set with a service ace, tying the match at one set apiece.

Arkansas didn’t go down without a fight, responding with an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to three. The Razorbacks continued pushing, narrowing the gap to just one point at one stage, but the Tigers held strong, ultimately winning the set 25-20 to go up 2-1.

The fourth set started off close, with both teams going back and forth, until a 7-2 run by the Tigers—capped by back-to-back kills from Vernon and junior Ragen Haith—gave them a solid lead. The Razorbacks answered with a few points of their own, but it wasn’t enough. Mizzou closed out the set with a 10-4 run, featuring kills from five different players, to take the set 25-15 and win the match 3-1.

The Tigers also showed significant improvement on defense around the court, finishing with an impressive 93 digs as a team, led by junior Maya Sands with 30. Their defensive effort held the Razorbacks to a low .163 hitting percentage.

Despite the momentum from their win over Arkansas, the Tigers’ second match of the weekend against Oklahoma was much more of a nail-biter, stretching all the way to five sets.

The Sooners jumped out to a quick 7-1 lead in the first set before the Tigers found their footing. Once they did, Mizzou began to inch back slowly, narrowing the gap to within four late in the set at 22-18. However, a kill and two errors allowed Oklahoma to secure the set, going up 1-0 on the Tigers.

The Tigers responded quickly in the second set, taking an early 4-1 lead and staying in front throughout. Although the Sooners managed to tie it a few times in the middle, a 4-0 run gave Mizzou their largest lead of the set. This advantage held, with the Tigers closing on a 7-2 run, capped by back-to-back kills from Iliff and Crownover, to take the set 25-18 and tie the match at one set apiece.

After some back-and-forth play and a narrow lead, the Tigers went on a 7-1 run, giving themselves plenty of breathing room. Their control continued through the rest of the set, which ended with a four-point Mizzou run, capped by three consecutive attack errors by the Sooners, handing Mizzou a 2-1 lead. It seemed as though Mizzou had taken all the momentum from Oklahoma after that third set.

As the fourth set began, the Tigers quickly took a 10-4 lead and looked to put the match away. However, the Sooners had other plans, responding with a 7-2 run to bring the score within one and stay in contention. Down 22-17, the Sooners found their footing and, despite being just three points away from losing the match, stormed back with a 7-2 run to tie the score at 24, forcing a win-by-two situation. Oklahoma then won two consecutive points to take the set and push the match to a decisive fifth set.

With momentum on their side, Oklahoma jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead in the fifth set. But the Tigers locked in and answered with three straight points to tie it up. The teams then went almost point for point until the set extended into a win-by-two situation. After trading a few points, a kill from Vernon followed by an ace from Crownover sealed the set 19-17, giving the Tigers a 3-2 match victory.

Crownover had another standout game with 60 assists, just one shy of her career high from the previous match, and added 12 digs. Her defensive contributions, along with 46 digs from the rest of the team, held the Sooners to a .195 hitting percentage.

With the two wins, the Tigers are now tied with Kentucky for second in the SEC, trailing only Texas. Mizzou remains on the road, heading to Austin to face the conference’s top-seeded team, the No. 7 Texas Longhorns, on Friday at 8 p.m.