Missouri volleyball (17-5, 8-2 SEC) extended their winning streak to eight with a home win against Georgia (9-12, 3-8 SEC). The Tigers won 3-1 (25-18, 25-12, 26-28, 25-17) over the Bulldogs, holding their opponents to a .163 hitting percentage. 

The first set of play was a game of runs and both teams made small scoring bursts. Jordan Iliff attacked the ball with great efficiency early on, burying three kills on four attacks and making three digs. Iliff and Mychael Vernon finished the first set with five kills each. 

The Tigers won the first set 25-18, ending on a 3-0 run. Iliff put the set away with a kill after a Georgia attacking error. Missouri played clean, only totaling three errors to the Bulldogs’ eight. 

The second set looked to be in Missouri’s favor yet again as they amassed a 13-5 lead and forced Georgia to burn a timeout. Iliff and Vernon both surpassed 10 kills in the match during the second set of play. 

The Tigers won the second set 25-12 on a .613 hitting percentage. Missouri had a match high in kills in a set with 19. Iliff and Vernon matched pace with each other again with five kills each. Missouri also tallied 18 assists and 17 digs. 

Georgia came out fighting in the third set, hoping to avoid the sweep. They started up 12-10 and continued to keep things close for the remainder of the game. The passing of Marina Crownover to Vernon helped the Tigers combat the Bulldogs push. Crownover finished with 57 assists in the match. 

Georgia avoided the sweep with a narrow 28-26 win in the third set with no team leading by more than two points. The end of the game was highlighted by a number of long rallies with great defensive play by both sides, with a combined 24 digs.

The fourth set appeared to be another close contest, tying early at 10. Missouri went on a 3-0 run with kills from three different players to garner a lead. The Tigers had four players in double-digit kills with Vernon, Iliff, Colleen Finney and Janet deMarrais. 

“[Crownover] just puts us in great positions,” Vernon said. “She’s just a really smart volleyball player, so she can see what the other side is doing and see if a person is shifting this way or shifting that way.” 

Missouri pulled away late in the set, winning 25-17 to close the match. The Tigers went on a 7-1 run to close out their eighth straight win led by Iliff’s three kills in the last seven points. Kiaraliz Perez Catala helped build the separation in the middle of the game, as her serves put Georgia in tough attacking positions. 

“I thought [Perez Catala] allowed us to just have confidence, and she got them out of systems, so then we could predict what they were going to do next,” Head Coach Dawn Sullivan said. “And so that just helped us simplify their offense, and so we could then close blocks and play the games.” 

Missouri was left off the latest AVCA top 25 poll as the first team out, but are expected to crack the rankings soon. The Tigers are also currently tied first in the SEC with Kentucky.

Missouri will continue a three-game homestand against South Carolina at 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 10. 

Edited by Dylan Heinrich | dheinrich@themaneater.com

Copyedited by Hannah Taylor | htaylor@themaneater.com 

Edited by Annie Goodykoontz | agoodykoontz@themaneater.com