University of Missouri
12-5,3-2SEC
Tennessee
9-6,2-3SEC
Volleyball Picks Up Five-Set Victory over Tennessee Sunday
10/13/2024 7:55:00 PM | Volleyball
COLUMBIA, Mo. - The University of Missouri volleyball team (12-5, 3-2 SEC) clinched a five-set (25-22, 25-27, 18-25, 25-23, 15-7) victory over Tennessee (9-6, 2-3 SEC) Sunday afternoon at the Hearnes Center.
With the victory, Mizzou notched its third-straight victory in five days and second-straight SEC win.
Three Tigers finished in double-digits attacking paced by Mychael Vernon and Jordan Iliff who each had 21-kill double-doubles. Vernon added 14 digs while Iliff secured a career-best 21 digs with two aces on a .364 clip.
Janet deMarrais was the third Mizzou student-athlete in double-figures, tallying 16 kills.
Marina Crownover finished with 56 assists to go with seven digs and an ace.
Libero Maya Sands led the defense with 22 digs and five assists.
FIRST SET (Mizzou 25-22, Mizzou leads 1-0)
The Tigers opened the contest taking a 5-3 lead that they held onto until late in the opening frame. The score swayed back and forth during the duration of the set, with 11 total ties and just four lead changes.
An ace from Vernon extended the early lead to 9-6.
Vernon notched a pair of kills before a Volunteers service error for a 17-16 edge.
Mizzou then took a 20-18 lead following a 3-0 run that featured back-to-back kills from Iliff and deMarrais. Tennessee would even the frame at 20-20 and 21-21 before Missouri secured the set on a 4-1 run.
Iliff (.625) and Vernon each had five kills in the opening set Sunday. Vernon capped the set with consecutive terminations.
SECOND SET (Tennessee 27-25, Match tied 1-1)
The second set was another back-and-forth affair that saw 12 ties and four leads changes.
An ace from Kaylen Rush provided the Tigers an early 2-1 lead that grew to 9-6 following a Vernon ace and Iliff kill.
Colleen Finney added a kill before an ace from Sands to knot the set at 21-21.
Vernon followed with another kill as Mizzou had set point following an Iliff rally stopper and Tennessee miscue (24-23).
The Volunteers would then retie the frame at 24-24 and even the match at 1-1 following a 3-0 run (27-25).
Vernon (.333) and Iliff (.455) each had five kills in set #2 while Crownover had 14 assists. Mizzou hit .387 in the frame.
THIRD SET (Tennessee 25-18, Tennessee leads 1-2)
A kill from Vernon before a UT attack error tied the set early at 9-9.
The Volunteers responded with a 5-0 run that grew to 9-2 to pull ahead 18-11.
Mizzou then trimmed the deficit to 18-16 following a 5-0 run of its own. Vernon notched a pair of kills while Kiaraliz Perez Catala had an ace along with rally stoppers by deMarrais and Iliff.
Tennessee continued to fight back, taking the frame on a 7-2 run including five-straight points (25-18).
FOURTH SET (Mizzou 25-23, Match Tied 2-2)
Mizzou then bounced back in the fourth set to force a decisive fifth stanza.
Tennessee commenced the fourth with a 7-1 lead. Mizzou would erase that deficit after four-straight points (7-7) including a pair of kills from Iliff.
deMarrais added two more terminations along with a rally stopper from Iliff for a slight 10-9 lead.
The Vols would then pull ahead 18-15 following a block assist before a 5-1 rally from Mizzou swapped the lead (20-19).
Vernon notched two more kills before a deMarrais shot brought on set point at 24-22.
The Vols would fend it off once before an Iliff kill forced a fifth set.
Iliff had seven kills in the fourth set (.308) followed by five from both deMarrais (.714) and Vernon.
Crownover tallied 15 assists over the fourth set.
The fourth set saw 10 ties and was the third of five sets with double-digit tie scorelines (44 total ties, 16 total lead changes).
FIFTH SET (Mizzou 15-7, Mizzou wins 3-2)
Mizzou took an early 3-2 lead in the fifth before consecutive points by Nina Cajic provided the Vols a slight 4-3 lead.
The Tigers then utilized a 5-0 run to pull ahead 8-4. Iliff had a pair of aces and a kill during the sequence.
A Tennessee block then cut the lead to 8-5 before Mizzou scored then next five points (13-5). Vernon had a pair of kills while Perez Catala placed an ace.
The Volunteers would score just twice more before Mizzou secured the victory on a block assist from Regan Haith and Vernon.
Iliff, deMarrais and Vernon each had a pair of kills in the final set Sunday.
MATCH NOTES
- Three Tigers finished in double-digits attacking paced by Mychael Vernon and Jordan Iliff who each had 21-kill double-doubles.
- Mychael Vernon added 14 digs and two aces while Jordan Iliff secured a career-best 21 digs with two aces on a .364 clip.
- It marked Jordan Iliff's eighth double-double of the season while it was Mychael Vernon's seventh in 2024.
- Mychael Vernon has tallied 12 or more kills and seven or more digs in each of the last three matches.
- Janet deMarrais was the third Mizzou student-athlete in double-figures, tallying 16 kills. She has tallied nine or more kills in each of the last three contests.
- Jordan Iliff notched her career-best 46th ace of the season Sunday after posting 45 in 2023.
- Jordan Iliff has posted 14 or more kills in each of the last three matches. Sunday marked the third 20-plus kill match for her this season.
- Marina Crownover finished with 56 assists to go with seven digs and an ace.
- Marina Crownover's 56 assists are her second-most this season and marks the third time in the 2024 campaign that she has exceeded 50 assists.
- Marina Crownover has posted 30 or more assists in each of the last three matches.
- Libero Maya Sands led the defense with 22 digs and five assists. The 2023 SEC Libero of the Year surpassed 20 digs in a match for the fourth time this season.
- Maya Sands has registered 16 or more digs in each of the last three matches.
- Colleen Finney tallied a pair of blocks to surpass 250 in her collegiate career. She also had two kills Sunday.
- Kiaraliz Perez Catala led Mizzou with three aces to match her NCAA Division I career high (third time with three aces). She also grabbed four digs Sunday.
- Kiaraliz Perez Catala has totaled four or more digs in each of the last three matches.
- Mizzou reached double-digit service aces for the seventh time this season after recording 10 (sixth 10 ace match in 2024). Mizzou has tallied 10 aces in three SEC matches this season.
- Six Tigers had at least one ace Sunday.
- Mizzou grabbed a season-best 71 digs. It marks the most the program has posted in a single match since recording 73 at Arkansas on October 8, 2023.
- The Tigers recorded 64 kills as a team on a .263 swinging percentage on Sunday, marking the second SEC match this season that Mizzou has recorded at least 60.
- With the victory, Mizzou notched its third-straight victory in five days and second-straight SEC win.
- Mizzou now leads the all-time series with Tennessee, 12-10. Sunday marked the first win over Tennessee since Nov. 24, 2021 (3-2).
LOOKING AHEAD
- Missouri will next conclude its four-match homestand with a matchup against Mississippi State on Sunday, October 20. First serve is set for 2 p.m., CT at the Hearnes Center. The match will be televised on SEC Network.
- Promotions include Volloween & Teacher Appreciation Day.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
- For all the latest information on Mizzou Volleyball, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Tigers on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
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