By the time they’ve reached collegiate-level athletics, every athlete has heard the phrase, “You practice like you play.”
This mentality seemed to be the case for the Missouri volleyball team Wednesday night. The Tigers suffered a tough 3-2 loss to Kansas State, making them 14-5 on the season and 1-2 in Big 12 Conference play.
“I was disappointed in our effort tonight,” coach Wayne Kreklow said. “We played like we did in practice over the past few days, and we just weren’t very good. We came out slow and fell behind from the start. We need to do a better job of coming in focused and ready to play. Overall, I was just pretty frustrated by our effort.”
Sophomore outside hitter Lisa Henning posted a career-high kill number for the second game in a row with 24 on the match. The front row combined for a total 15 blocks in the five sets, another season high for the team.
Despite putting up strong offensive numbers, the Tigers endured turbulence in the middle of the match and in the final set.
Kreklow said there were several elements in the match that potentially led to the rollercoaster performance.
“It’s really hard to pinpoint,” Kreklow said. “I would say youth, but our veteran players played just as bad. They certainly got off to a very bad start just like the young kids. It was definitely a team effort.”
Practices were sluggish leading up to the Wednesday matchup, according to Kreklow and several players.
“(I was) constantly having to remind people to move to the right spot,” Kreklow said. “People werenÃt ready for tips, and we’re not anticipating. We’re not moving. Everybody’s kind of got mush for brains. That’s how we practiced and that’s how we played.”
Sophomore setter Molly Kreklow said she also saw these problems in the practices leading up to Wednesday. She suggested the freshmen might be having a hard time adjusting to playing conference matches during the week.
“It’s definitely difficult with the dynamic we have on our team, with all of the young players,” she said. “With school and stuff going on, they just have a lot on their minds. So, we’re just trying to get them to focus. The upperclassmen know practice has to be better, but it’s hard. You can’t practice for other people.”
After the team funneled into the tunnel after the game, Wayne Kreklow pointed to a few pictures of veteran volleyball players plastered on the brick inside the Hearnes Center.
“My comment to them is that they pass that wall every day, Kreklow said. “Those people that are on that wall built a foundation and laid the groundwork here for an outstanding program. That kind of preparation and that approach to a match simply isn’t acceptable. We’re not going to do that here.”
Molly Kreklow said the team understands why its coach is frustrated.
“Missouri has built a great program, and we have to continue that,” Molly Kreklow said. “We can’t come out here and think that we don’t owe it to anybody to play well.”
As for continuing on with conference play next week at Oklahoma (15-3, 2-0 Big 12), Molly Kreklow said the next few days are crucial.
“We all know Oklahoma’s a great team, but what a perfect match for us,” Molly Kreklow said. “To come back and beat them would be so good for us. And like coach said, we’ve got to have great practices and preparation. We’ve got to get back to that and practice as well as we can.”
The Tigers will face off against the Sooners at 6:30 Wednesday in Norman, Okla.