Volleyball: Thursday morning quick hits
Thanks to the wonders of cable and TiVo, for the first time this season, I was able watch Missouri volleyball away from the Hearnes Center on Wednesday as Missouri squared off with No. 16 Kansas State in Manhattan, Kan. on FSN Kansas City. Missouri dropped a close four-setter, 23-25, 25-22, 25-23, 25-22.
The match was the first of a three-match stretch of television appearances for Missouri, as the Tigers host No. 2 Nebraska and Kansas in televised matches in the next week. The Nebraska match will be televised nationally on FSN, and the Kansas match will be televised on the Mizzou Sports Network.
Here's a couple of quick hit observations from Wednesday's match:
- Offensive tendencies are starting to become more apparent. Sophomore Julianna Klein loves the high ball, but has become crafty in how she handles it. If she sees a single blocker, Klein attempts to put it down with authority. But if teams try to sell out for the block, Klein is adept enough to roll the ball into vacated spaces.
Junior Megan Wilson has been most effective offensively off the quick set and when Missouri can change the point of attack, but has often struggled putting high balls past blocks. Sophomore Catie Wilson continues to develop as one of Missouri's more dangerous threats, but is still developing the requisite consistency to become a force in the Big 12. Catie Wilson led Missouri with 12 kills Wednesday.
- Missouri seems to be embracing its finesse style. Klein can bring the big hammer when necessary, but arguably the most consistent offense Missouri has had in conference play has been roll shots from junior Amanda Hantouli. Hantouli finished with 10 kills and four errors Wednesday.
- After the Baylor match Sept. 21, coach Wayne Kreklow noted his team's inability to matchup with bigger teams. That was on display Wednesday, as Missouri was out-blocked 11-7. The numbers always seem a tad misleading, as Missouri seems to be getting block-killed far more often than the Tigers can block-kill opponents. Missouri is dead last in conference play in opponents blocks per set, surrendering 2.64 a frame in Big 12 play.
- In the record books, the Kansas State match is merely a four-set win for Kansas State, but neither team really pulled away in the match. Through the entire match, Kansas State outscored Missouri by only eight points.
- When evaluating serves, Kreklow said he likes to see at 1:1 ratio or better between service aces to service errors. Against Kansas State, Missouri had three aces (all belonging to Caitlyn Vann) to six service errors.
- As far as an NCAA tournament berth is concerned, the burden of proof is beginning to pick up for Missouri. Missouri has 14 conference matches remaining, and likely needs to go at least 8-6 in those matches for serious consideration. The Big 12 is a strong conference, but a sub-.500 conference record is hard to shake come tournament selection time.
- What will Missouri take from the Kansas State loss? Will the players look at it as proof that they can compete with a nationally-ranked team, or will they view it as a close match and a 1-0 lead that they let slip away?