The senior right side hitter has made an everlasting influence on the program
The decision was easy for St. Louis native Jordan Iliff when, as an eighth grader, she decided where she wanted to go play college volleyball. The No. 37 recruit in PrepVolleyball’s class of 2021 rankings had visited other schools like Purdue, Ohio State and Notre Dame, but she ultimately decided to stay home and play for the University of Missouri.
“I came to camps here ever since fifth grade, sixth grade, and I went to them all throughout [my childhood] … It was just a dream of mine, and it was all I really had my focus on,” Iliff said.
That decision led to Iliff’s commitment to Missouri volleyball. She has reached the 1,000-kill mark as well as 100 service aces and 500 digs already in her career. Iliff has been a key player for a program that finished with nine wins her sophomore year before doubling that win total to 18 her junior year under new head coach Dawn Sullivan’s leadership.
Iliff was exposed to volleyball at a young age; the sport runs in the family courtesy of her parents.
“My parents met, like, playing sand volleyball together,” Iliff said. “So I would always get asked to [play] pepper in the backyard, and it was just always around my family and I played really young.”
Iliff’s height proved to be perfect for a potential star down the road at 6 feet 2 inches tall.
As a child, Iliff’s least favorite sport was volleyball. She preferred sports where she could control her success individually – like shooting in basketball or pitching in softball – instead of a game like volleyball, where good ball control around the team was essential to success. That mindset changed when she reached fifth grade.
“By fifth grade, she started playing with better players and clubs started, and then it started, rising quick, because then there’s good passing, good setting,” father Doug Iliff said.
Once she joined club teams, she quit playing all other sports by seventh grade.
During high school, Iliff played on the top club volleyball team in the St. Louis area, the Rockwood Thunder. Fellow Missouri volleyball player Morgan Isenberg played on the same club team since her sophomore year of high school. Iliff and Isenberg are the only two current seniors to play at Missouri for all four years of college. Isenberg still remembers the days of playing club ball with Iliff.
“[The club team] was so fun,” Isenberg said. “She’s always been just the sweetest girl and such a hard worker and insanely talented.”
The success Iliff had in club ball propelled into college once she started playing at Missouri.
Her freshman year in the 2021 season, the team went from a second-round loss in the NCAA tournament to a five-win team the next year under coach Joshua Taylor. Iliff recorded high-level experience, making 14 starts and recording 173 kills as a freshman.
“I think it’s when I learned that I was capable of competing at this level,” Iliff said. “Obviously, it wasn’t the best year of Mizzou volleyball history, but it’s where I learned that I can be on the court and contribute.”
Her sophomore year was much of the same, as Missouri finished with nine total wins in the 2022 season. She was third on the team with 227 kills that season with an increased playing time as she started in 20 matches that season.
Although her beginning seasons were pretty disappointing in terms of wins, Iliff is still grateful for the positive impact those seasons later made as an upperclassman and leader.
“I think both of those years helped a lot with my confidence going into the season that was much more successful,” Iliff said.
The next season was more successful, as Dawn Sullivan took control of the program in December of 2022 as an attempt to improve results.
Iliff was nervous at first and wasn’t sure if a new coach was going to change much.
The nerves crept in early, as the team experienced early losses to smaller schools like Buffalo and Eastern Illinois. However, the team was different, as they proceeded to finish 9-9 in conference play and make the second round of the NCAA tournament.
“I don’t think I’ll ever forget it, because we were finally being talked about, we were finally on the map,” Iliff said. “It was just so much fun to have a new team and new coaching staff that had belief in all of us on the court.”
Iliff’s play jumped significantly as well under Sullivan’s leadership. She recorded 388 kills that season along with a career-high hitting percentage than any other previous season. Besides all the statistical improvements, her biggest accomplishment that season was a spot on the 2023 All-SEC team.
“I was genuinely shocked,” Iliff said. “I remember a few weeks later, I was like, ‘Wow, that is so crazy, I would have never, ever expected to be on that.’ and it was super awesome.”
Now in her senior year, Iliff has continued to improve her play on the court. She currently has a higher hitting percentage than any previous season and is on pace for a career-high in kills. The team’s play has matched those stats, including a nine-match winning streak earlier in the year.
“I never had any doubt that we were going to be a good team, but what we’re doing right now is more than I thought we were going to do, and it’s so awesome,” Iliff said.
After beating No. 9 ranked Texas and being ranked No. 4 in the Southeastern Conference standings, Iliff has big goals for this team.
“Our goal going in was to make it to the Sweet 16, but I would love to see if we can go a little further than that,” Iliff said.
No matter how far the team goes this season, it takes nothing away from how much Iliff’s play and leadership have meant to this team.
“I see so much joy in her eyes when she plays,” Isenberg said. “I feel like she’s grown into that. She’s always loved the game, but she’s grown to love the game at such a higher level, and it’s really fun to see her have fun out there.”
For her parents, it’s been a pleasure to watch her play for Missouri these past four years.
“It’s been a joy,” mother Sue Iliff said. “We’re two hours away, so we catch every home game, always family here and you watch her play, but you also watch the friendships.”
After the season ends, it will likely not be the end of Iliff’s volleyball career. Iliff plans to play professionally in the spring or next fall. However, this does not distract from her effort with this year’s team.
“My biggest goal is whenever the season ends, to just feel content and happy with everything that I have done and that this team has done,” Iliff said.
Edited by Dylan Heinrich | dheinrich@themaneater.com
Copyedited by Amelia Schaefer and Natalie Kientzy | nkientzy@themaneater.com
Edited by Emily Skidmore | eskidmore@themaneater.com