Missouri volleyball ended their regular season with a 2-2 record. Here’s a look into their last four conference matches.

Ole Miss

In the first match of the Mississippi road trip for Missouri volleyball, the Tigers beat the Ole Miss Rebels in five sets. 

The first set was a dogfight as both teams had small runs to gain momentum, but neither team would budge. A late 9-0 run for the Tigers helped seal a first-set win 25-19.

The second set was much of the same before Ole Miss went on the 6-0 run, gaining the lead late to win the second set 25-21.

Ole Miss used that late momentum in the second set to its advantage in the third set, taking and maintaining a lead. The Rebels hit .290 in comparison to a .032 hitting percentage that Missouri held in the third set, which led to a 25-16 win for the Rebels. 

Trying to avoid an upset, Missouri came alive with a  25-16 win to even the match at two sets. The Tigers’ hitting percentage was much improved in the fourth set at .325.

In the match-deciding fifth set, the Tigers had a 5-1 lead early on. Ole Miss then tied the set at five before Missouri regained the lead and refused to relinquish it. The Tigers won the set 15-11 to pull off a big comeback.

Mychael Vernon led the Tigers with 18 kills along with Jordan Iliff with 16.

Mississippi State

Missouri concluded its Mississippi road trip with a 3-1 loss (25-19, 20-25, 22-25, 24-26) against Mississippi State. The Tigers totaled 22 attacking errors and 10 service errors as the Bulldogs claimed an upset win.

Missouri started the match strong with a 25-19 victory in the first set on a .409 hitting percentage. Iliff surged in the set with seven kills en route to 14 total in the match. 

The Tigers dropped the next three sets. All three final sets were within five points, but Missouri could not win several intense rallies.

The fourth and final set was the closest of the match after the Tigers dug themselves a hole, allowing a 7-0 Bulldog run as they fell behind 13-7. Missouri fought back with Regan Haith and freshman Claire Morrissey spiking down four kills each. 

Five Tigers achieved double-digit digs in the match, with Maya Sands leading the way with 21.

This loss took a chance at the SEC title and a top-16 seed off the table for Missouri, who was on a five-game losing streak coming into the match.

Kentucky

Missouri volleyball lost 3-1 to the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats to start its two-game homestand. The Tigers hit .220 in the match with 46 kills and 19 errors in the tough loss. 

The first set was close in the first half as both offenses were firing at all cylinders. A late 8-1 run for Kentucky was too much for Missouri to overcome, losing the first set 25-19.

The momentum from the late run for the Wildcats seemed to have bled into the next set, winning by a significant margin of 25-14. 

The Tigers showed fight to avoid the sweep in the third set. Maintaining a lead for the majority of the set, a kill by Iliff clinched the 25-23 win.

“I was really proud. There’s just them continuing to battle, but also, that’s how you learn,” head coach Dawn Sullivan said. 

This time the Tigers’ momentum bled into the next set as they started off the fourth set on fire with a 7-3 run. However, a late 8-0 run for the Wildcats diminished the Tigers’ lead and secured a 25-20 set win and a 3-1 match victory.

History was made for Missouri as Vernon racked up her 1,500th kill in her collegiate career during the match. 

“I wouldn’t want to do it anywhere else. I feel like this is the perfect place with perfect teammates to do it…I’m glad that I hit the milestone,” Vernon said.

Haith performed well in the match for Missouri, hitting .455 with four blocks. 

Auburn

Missouri volleyball swept Auburn 3-0 during senior night in its final match of the regular season.

Missouri’s offense started fast, as a 5-0 run for the Tigers propelled them to a 25-18 win. Missouri finished the set hitting .295 compared to Auburn’s .125 hitting percentage.

They continued their offensive prowess in the next two sets, winning the second one 25-19 and the third 25-16. The main highlight of both sets was all seven seniors getting playing time, including a kill each from Morgan Isenberg and Naomi Franco.

“If I have opportunities, I knew I was going to play them,” Sullivan said.

The dynamic duo of seniors Iliff and Vernon both led the Missouri offense with 14 kills a-piece. The Tigers were extremely efficient, hitting .406 in the match. 

“I feel like you can’t get better than a 3-0 victory right before we’re about to go into Selection Sunday tomorrow,” Colleen Finney said.

This was the final match of the regular season for the Tigers. They went onto the NCAA Tournament as they took on Texas State in the Dallas Regional at 4 p.m. on Dec. 5 in Dallas. 

Edited by Dylan Heinrich | dheinrich@themaneater.com

Copy edited by Natalie Kientzy | nkientzy@themaneater.com

Edited by Annie Goodykoontz | agoodykoontz@themaneater.com