Mizzou’s Brynn Carlson, left, jumps to hit the ball on Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021 at Hearnes Center in Columbia.
A recurring theme for Missouri volleyball has been its offensive inconsistency. On Friday night, those issues reemerged to hurt the Tigers.
Missouri lost in a straight sweep to Ole Miss in their return to Columbia. After grabbing its first Power Five victory last weekend against Auburn, Missouri couldn’t replicate its success against Ole Miss.
The Rebels overwhelmed Missouri with a balanced offensive attack, which featured five separate players with more than five kills. Ole Miss finished the game with a .383 hitting percentage and 6 aces.
On defense, the Rebels produced 8 total blocks and held the Tigers to a .176 hitting percentage. Ole Miss sophomore middle blocker Sasha Ratliff led the defensive stand with 1 solo block and 4 block assists, while senior middle blocker Aubrey Sultemeier added 3 block assists.
Missouri’s 16 attack errors and 9 service errors limited any opportunity for a comeback and gave the Rebels enough momentum to hold the Tigers at bay. Those mistakes are reminiscent of ones that have plagued Missouri throughout its struggles this season and serve as areas to improve on going forward.
Following her career-high 27 kills in the victory against Auburn, junior outside hitter Anna Dixon produced 10 kills, while committing 7 total errors. Missouri freshman middle blocker Trista Strasser found success on the service line early and tallied 3 of the Tigers’ 5 total aces.
Defensively, Missouri failed to halt the Ole Miss attack and finished with 3 total blocks on the night. Even though the Tigers’ defense contributed to the Rebels’ 10 attack errors, 8 service errors and 1 block error, Ole Miss utilized its own defensive prowess to offset the mistakes.
Most of the first set featured a back-and-forth match against the two squads. Ole Miss jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but Strasser used one of her career-high 8 kills and 3 consecutive aces to pull Missouri ahead 5-3. However, the Rebels used aces by senior outside hitter Lauren Thompson and graduate setter Kylie McLaughlin to establish an 11-8 lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
Even as Missouri began to fight back, four errors in a span of five plays brought the score from 14-12 to 18-13. Ole Miss used the ensuing momentum to push Missouri to the brink of defeat before Sultemeier used her fifth kill of the set to finish off the Tigers in set one, 25-17.
Missouri’s offensive mistakes dictated the result of set two. The Tigers committed 11 attack errors, which contributed to their .000 hitting percentage, and they failed to limit Ole Miss’s offense. The Rebels benefitted from 8 Missouri errors, which helped them establish a 11-9 lead.
The early advantage gave Ole Miss enough breathing room as they cruised to another 25-17 victory. Ratliff’s solo block and 3 kills in this set aided the Rebels defensively, while, offensively, Thompson provided three kills of her own in the set.
Early in the third set, Missouri established a 5-2 lead, which held up until the Rebels tied the game at 11 points apiece. From that point, Ole Miss used 5 Tiger errors and multiple kills from Thompson and Sultemeier to finish on a 14-9 run.
On the brink of being swept, the Tigers put together their most efficient set of the evening, but struggled to limit Ole Miss’s offense once again. Even with a .375 hitting percentage, Missouri allowed the Rebels to fight back and take the third set, 25-20.
Ole Miss improved to 14-5 (3-5 SEC) with the victory, while Missouri fell to 4-17 (1-7 SEC). The programs will match up again on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. The Tigers are still seeking their first home victory of the season, while the Rebels hope to improve their SEC record.
Edited by Kyle Pinnell | kpinnell@themaneater.com