Mizzou volleyball players Trisha Strasser, left, and Nicole Alford jump to block South Carolina’s play on Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021 at Hearnes Center in Columbia.
In its third SEC matchup of the season, Missouri volleyball traveled to take on Louisiana State in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The Tigers sought a win after their streak of four losses, but their first-set lead did not carry throughout the entirety of the match. Missouri came up short, losing all three of its sets 22-25, 15-25, 12-25.
Missouri led 6-3 early, led by junior outside hitter Anna Dixon, who made 2 aces in the beginning of the set. Freshman right-side hitter Jordan Iliff also contributed to her team’s early lead with 3 kills. But the Tigers lost their lead due to 3 attack errors and 2 service errors toward the end of the set, and ultimately lost 22-25.
LSU and Missouri went back and forth to start the second set, but after an early 4-4 tie, the Baton Rouge Tigers took the lead for good. Dixon made 3 kills throughout the set, but Kylie Deberg, LSU graduate outside hitter and former Missouri Tiger, and senior right-side Taylor Bannister overpowered Missouri. Deberg finished with a hitting percentage of .423, while Bannister finished with a hitting percentage of .500 as the set ended 15-25.
Although the Tigers of Columbia wanted to extend the game, LSU leaped ahead early and won the final set 12-25. Bannister led early with 3 kills in a row, helping LSU take an early lead of 1-8. Missouri freshman middle back Kayla Burbage made an early block against LSU, while graduate setter Nicole Alford blocked a hit toward the end of the set.
Seeking to end their losing streak, Missouri returns to the Hearnes Center to play the University of Alabama next Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
Edited by Kyle Pinnell, kpinnell@themaneater.com