Missouri volleyball falls to Kansas in Border Showdown
The Tigers look to rebound with a match against Colorado on Saturday.
Published Oct. 1, 2010
The Missouri volleyball team fell to 10-5 on the season and 2-3 in conference play with a loss to Kansas on Wednesday night. Senior outside hitter Julianna Klein led the Tigers with 18 kills on a career-best .445 hitting. Freshman setter Molly Kreklow finished with 50 assists and 12 digs to record her fourth career double-double.
The Tigers got off to a sluggish start and lost nine out of the first 12 points. The team was able to rebound with four consecutive points, which shrunk the Kansas lead to two. Missouri was unable to keep its momentum, and Kansas went on another 9-3 run, putting the Jayhawks up 18-10. The Tigers were able to fight back toward the end of the set but couldn’t quite get ahead of the Jayhawks, who won 25-21.
“We need to focus on our side of the net,” junior middle blocker Brittney Brimmage said. “We need to stop worrying about what they do on the other side and worry about our side.”
The second set started out better for the Tigers, who took a 5-3 lead over the Jayhawks. But the team's playing quickly became inconsistent, and it gave up the next eight points to Kansas. On the other hand, scoring came fairly easily for the Jayhawks, who hit .350 during the second set. The Tigers rallied again, but the Jayhawks took the second set 25-20.
Missouri was finally able to get things going in the third set, and the Tiger never let Kansas build the lead it did during the first two matches. The two teams exchanged points until sophomore middle blocker Lindsey Petrick was substituted in to serve at 16-15. In her first-ever service attempt, Petrick forced an overpass that set up the kill for freshman outside hitter Lisa Henning. The Jayhawks kept it close, but the Tigers would not give up the set. They won 26-24.
“I think overall, we hit fairly well as a team,” Klein said. “I think we hit .245, which isn’t too bad. We kind of broke down in the serving and passing game. Our passing game was just mediocre.”
Following the third set, Missouri struggled to stay in system as it quickly fell behind 7-4. Coach Wayne Kreklow again subbed in Petrick to serve, who led the Tigers in a modest three point-scoring streak. Kansas then countered with a pair of service aces that began an 11-4 scoring run. The Jayhawks would go on to take the fourth set, 25-21.
“We didn’t play as well as we have been lately,” freshman setter Molly Kreklow said. “We just need to get back to practice and focus on the next thing and forget about this game.”
The Tigers will try and bounce back from their rivalry loss when they host the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday. The Buffaloes come into the match with a 5-6 overall record and a 2-3 record in Big 12 play. The match starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Hearnes Center.