Missouri volleyball (11-7, 3-4 SEC) opened its Southeastern Conference home stand with a sweep of Ole Miss (9-9, 1-6 SEC) on Oct. 17, winning 25-19, 25-19 & 25-22. The Tigers secured their second straight victory and improved to 3-4 in conference play with the win.
Missouri controlled the offense, outhitting the Rebels .288 to .195. Senior outside hitter Caylen Alexander paced the Tigers with 15 kills and a .324 hitting percentage. Redshirt junior setter Marina Crownover contributed 33 assists and eight digs, while freshman r libero Zoey Matias-Lopez posted 14 digs and two aces. Freshman outside hitter Paige Felder recorded five kills, her best showing since Sept. 19 against Chicago State.
In the first set, a service ace from Alexander and a solo block by redshirt senior middle blocker Tyrah Ariail helped Missouri to a 10-6 lead, forcing an Ole Miss timeout. The Tigers kept the pressure on, highlighted by kills from senior outside hitter Janet deMarrais and Ariail, before closing the set 25-19.
In the second set, Ole Miss took its first lead at 16-13. However, Missouri responded with a 6-1 run fueled by senior middle blocker Regan Haith’s kills and Crownover’s precise setting. Felder and fellow freshman right-side Maca Lobaglio added key points off the bench to push Missouri to a 25-19 set win.
The third set featured a back-and-forth battle with multiple ties. Felder made key contributions late, including a set-point kill to seal the match 25-22. Missouri finished with 42 kills to the Rebels’ 38.
Head coach Dawn Sullivan reflected on the team’s work and improvements so far.
“We’re working really hard and serving balls in a row,” Sullivan said. “And then just our defense, I think, has really improved in the last couple days… and just the number of balls that we’re digging to continue to put pressure on the other team has allowed them to… be completely consistent.”
The Tigers now lead their all-time series against the Rebels 20-11. Sullivan has improved to 51-29 with Missouri and 2-1 against Ole Miss. The Tigers will finish their weekend at home against Louisiana State University Oct. 19 and will follow that match by traveling to Southeast Missouri State Oct. 22.
