Sitting at a 6-1 and 1 1/2 games behind undefeated South Carolina in the Southeastern Conference East division, Missouri has a chance to improve on its record this weekend in Morehead, Ky., at the Morehead State Eagle Challenge.
Leading the Tigers will be junior outside hitter Lisa Henning, the reigning SEC Player of the Week. Last weekend at the Lipscomb Invitational she averaged 4.22 kills and racked up 29 digs. She currently leads the team in kills (95) and aces (11).
Alongside Henning will be junior setter Molly Kreklow, who was named the All Tournament MVP at Lipscomb. Kreklow is just 17 assists shy of becoming the fifth player in Missouri history to have 3,000 career assists.
On Friday afternoon, Missouri will begin play against Valparaiso. The Crusaders are a noticeably short team, with seven players under 6-foot and their tallest standing 6 feet 2 inches. The team’s strongest asset might be its defense, led by senior libero Taylor Root. She is averaging 4.97 digs per set and has been an AVCA All-American honorable mention the past two years.
After Valparaiso, Missouri will take on host Morehead State, which has won its last two matches after an 0-5 start. A trio of seniors leads the Eagles in setter Caitlin Clark (6.93 assists per set), outside hitter Ellie Roberson (3.97 kills per set) and middle blocker Annie Gruenschlaeger (40 blocks).
The Tigers will wrap up the tournament a day later against Savannah State, a team which has yet to win a set this season.
This weekend’s tournament will mark the end of pre-conference play for Missouri. The Tigers will have their first SEC conference game in school history against Tennessee on Wednesday at the Hearnes Center.