With only four games remaining in the season, Missouri volleyball’s destiny is in its own hands.
The Tigers are currently 18-9 with a 9-7 record in the Southeastern Conference and an RPI ranking of 47. In order for the team to qualify for the NCAA tournament, that ranking will have to stay within the 50.
“We just have to stay focused on what’s immediately in front of us,” coach Wayne Kreklow said after Friday’s loss to Florida. “What you have to do in this kind of situation is put all of your focus on what’s next. We’re concentrated on fundamentals and (will) hopefully catch a few breaks and just see what happens down the stretch.”
The team’s upcoming four-game stretch starts with a road matchup against No. 17 Texas A&M. Missouri lost to the Aggies 3-1 in its first meeting in October. In the match, junior outside hitter Lisa Henning had 20 kills, sophomore libero Sarah Miester had 22 digs and sophomore middle blocker Whitney Litter had five blocks. But the Aggies had four players with double-digit kills and were able to hold Missouri to an attack average of less than .200 for three sets.
The team could win its final four games, starting with the one against the Aggies, junior setter Molly Kreklow said.
“We still have two weeks,” she said. “First we need to do our best to win our home games. Then we have to travel to face Texas A&M. They’re a good team, but we can definitely hang with them. We’re on the bubble, but we’re from a strong enough conference, so if we win our next four we’ll be in (the tournament).”
Missouri’s final road game of the season will be Nov. 18 at Mississippi State. The Tigers won dominantly, 3-0, last time they faced the Bulldogs, who are 0-16 against SEC teams.
The team cannot overlook opponents in its final two weeks, Henning said.
“We just need to focus one game at time and just keep trying to beat the teams we know we can beat,” Henning said. “We also can’t give anything away. If people are going to beat us, we’re going to make them earn it.”
Missouri will then return home for its final two games at the Hearnes Center. The first matchup will be Nov. 21 against Kentucky, a team the Tigers haven’t played this season. With an 11-6 conference record, the Wildcats are third in the SEC East division, one spot higher than the Tigers.
The season finale will be Nov. 23, when Missouri hosts Alabama. When the two teams met in Tuscaloosa, Ala., in early October, the Tigers won 3-1.
From there, Missouri will await its fate to see if it makes the NCAA tournament, which starts in the second week of December.
“All we can do is take care of what we have left,” Molly Kreklow said.