Oct. 19, 2000

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No. 24 Missouri Begins Second Leg of "Tiger Turnaround Tour."
After rolling to an 8-2 Big 12 record in their first run through the gauntlet that is the Big 12 volleyball schedule, the No. 24 University of Missouri volleyball team is set to kick off the second leg of the "2000 Tiger Turnaround Tour." The Tigers currently sit in second place in the Big 12 at 8-2 and are sporting an impressive 17-2 overall record, up from last years 4-16 Big 12 mark and 10-21 overall mark And the start to the second leg of the tour is not what you would call a cake walk. The Tigers travel to College Station, Texas to take on the Texas A & M Aggies on Sat., Oct. 21. The No. 25 Aggies are 12-5 overall and 7-3 in the Big 12 after picking up a 3-1 win over Texas on Wednesday night. Facing A & M has proven to be a daunting task both at home and away the past three years, but its the programs home success has been unparalleled. The Aggies have won 26 straight matches at home dating back to Nov. 5, 1998 when the Aggies swept... yes, you guessed it, Missouri, 15-10, 15-11, 15-5. A & M is led offensively by the very talented trio of juniors Michelle Cole and Erin Gibson, and senior Heather Marshall. All three players are averaging well over three kills per game. Marshall leads the team in blocks with 73 (14 solo/59 assists). The Tigers surprised the Aggies earlier this season in the Hearnes Center sweeping the then-No.19 Aggies, 15-12, 15-8, 15-8 and beating A & M for the first time since 1983. However, the Aggies still own a 10-2 edge in the all-time series.

Morris Named Big 12 Volleyball Player of the Week
Sophomore Lisa Morris, an outside hitter from Overland Park, Kan., has been named the Big 12 Volleyball Player of the Week for the week of Oct. 16. Morris recorded 47 kills on 89 attempts for a .438 hitting percentage in wins over Oklahoma and Kansas last week for the No. 24 Tigers (17-2, 8-2 in the Big 12). Morris led Missouri to their first win over Oklahoma (15-11, 15-8, 15-12) in Norman in 17 years on Sat., Oct. 14. She recorded 24 kills against the Sooners, which tied a school record for kills in a three-game match. Morris recorded a .611 hitting percentage for the match and just missed her sixth double-double of the year after picking up nine digs. Just three days prior, Morris helped Missouri down Kansas with 23 kills and 14 digs in a 15-13, 11-15, 15-12, 15-8 win over the Jayhawks. Morris recorded 23 kills and 14 digs in the Wed., Oct. 11 match.

On Wed., Oct. 18... Mizzou Rolls over CU
Sophomore Lisa Morris continued her outstanding 2000 play putting down 17 kills and picking up 10 digs as the University of Missouri volleyball team swept three games from the University of Colorado on Wednesday night, 15-12 , 15-9 , 15-10. Morris now has seven double-doubles on the year and was named Big 12 volleyball athlete of the week on Monday. The Tigers used a solid blocking effort putting down 15 total team blocks with sophomore Christi Myers leading the way with five. Myers also put down fifteen kills and accumulated a .519 hitting percentage. Junior Naaron Branson also had a solid match terminating 14 attacks and picking up seven digs. The Tigers recorded a very high hitting percentage as well with a .331 mark and held CU to .255. CU was led by junior Sonja Nielsen who put down 16 kills and dug up 10 digs on the evening. Mizzou was once again solid on the service line as well recording nine service aces to the Buffalo's one. Morris and Myers shared the honors each recording three a piece. Senior Heather Gerber handed out 50 assists on the night and put the Tigers in good kill position. The Tigers improve to 17-2 on the year and 8-2 in the Big 12. The win was also MU's first match win over Colorado since the inaugural meeting between the two schools almost 14 years ago to the day, Oct. 19, 1983, a 3-0 Tigers win sweep in Ames, Iowa.

Tigers Hold on Strong at No.24
MU ups vote total to 170 Columbia, Mo. - The University of Missouri volleyball team cracked the USA Today/American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 25 poll on Mon., Oct. 9 for the first time in 18 years and have been locked in that position since. The No. 24 Tigers are now 16-2 on the year and 7-2 in the Big 12 Conference. The Tigers are one of three teams from the Big 12 to be ranked including Texas A&M and No. 1 Nebraska. A Mizzou squad had not been ranked in the AVCA poll since Nov. 1, 1982, when that team was No. 20. The highest rank a Tiger team has reached was the No. 18 slot on Oct. 18, 1982.

Tiger Fans Come Out in Record Numbers
Mizzou played in front of the second largest home crowd in school history in their win on Wed., Oct. 11 over Kansas. A rowdy crowd of 1,148 went through the turnstiles, just 152 fans off of the all-time highest attended match. The Tigers have drawn six of the Top 10 crowds in school history this season and continue to roll through the Big 12 season. The fans just kept on coming for the Tigers next home match as well. 1000 Mizzou Maniacs came to the Hearnes Center to watch the Tigers sweep the Buffaloes of Colorado on Wed., Oct. 18, the fourth largest crowd in MU volleyball history.

KJ and Christi: Monitoring the Middle
Junior Krista Johnson and sophomore Christi Myers have provided a spark at the middle blocker position for the Tigers this season. Krista (KJ) Johnson has been the Tigers "unstoppable force" recording a team-high .376 hitting percentage while also ranking second on the team in total blocks with 53 total blocks (7 solo / 46 assists). Myers continues to be a presence in the middle averaging 3.03 kills per game while putting up a .366 hitting percentage. Myers has also proved to be the Tigers "immovable object" recording 87 total blocks (25 solo and 62 assists) on the year.

Morris Ties MU Termination Mark
Sophomore Lisa Morris' 24-kill effort on Sat. Oct. 14 in the Tigers 3-0 sweep of Oklahoma tied an MU record for kills in a three game match. The Overland Park, Kansas native now shares the distinction with former Tiger Melinda Wrye, who put down 24 kills on Nov. 14, 1992 against SEMO. Branson joins Myers' Block Party
On Sat., Sept. 23, against Baylor there was music (provided by Point Mizzou, the MU Volleyball Pep band), food (provided by concessions stands), and of course, a crowd (776 Tiger faithful to be exact), so sophomore Christi Myers decided to throw a block party. Myers tied the Big 12 single match record with her five solo block performance. She finished the night with 12 total blocks. Junior Naaron Branson joined the party on Sat., Sept. 30 when she also recorded five block solos in the Tigers three game sweep of No. 24 Kansas State. Branson, Myers, and three other players now share the Big 12 record. Myers leads the Tigers in blocks with 82 on the year (23 block solos / 59 block assists).

Branson's Back, Morris is Marvelous
The outside hitters on the MU squad continue to put up big numbers this season. The latest example of this trend is the outstanding performance by junior Naaron Branson on Wed., Oct. 18 when Branson put down a 14 kills and picked up seven digs in the Tigers 3-0 sweep of Colorado. Sophomore Lisa Morris must chew Double Mint Gum by Wrigley's. Morris has doubled her excitement recording seven double-doubles (kills and digs) this season and leads the team with 26 service aces. She leads the team in both kills (262) and attacks (703), while also slating 42 blocks on the year. Junior Kristen Johnson has also been outstanding thus far for the Tigers. She is currently rehabbing after an injury to her left knee and is expected to return to the Tiger lineup in approximately three weeks. Johnson is now second on the squad in kills (194) and attacks (417). She is third on the team in hitting percentage, hitting a robust .341 on the year.

Home Sweet Hearnes hasProven to Be Upset Central
The Tigers are now 9-0 in the friendly confines of the Hearnes Center. MU has defeated two ranked opponents (then No. 19 Texas A&M and then No. 24 Kansas State), won the Lathrop & Gage Tiger Invitational, and pulled out a thrilling five game match over Baylor in front of the hometown crowd.

Tiger Tid Bits...
,The Tigers are 53-10 in games this season. Mizzou's 17 wins this season eclipses the team's win total from a year ago when they went 10-21.

,MU is 2-1 against ranked opponents this season and 0-1 against Top-10 teams beating then No. 19 Texas A&M, losing to No. 1 Nebraska, and defeating No. 24 Kansas State.

,Head Coach Susan Kreklow and Associate Head Coach Wayne Kreklow were a combined 85-0 in their last two seasons at Columbia College before taking over at Mizzou. With the Tigers 15-2 record this season, their record now stands at an amazing 102-2 in the last three seasons.

Gerber With the Assist
Senior setter Heather Gerber claimed the MU all-time career assists title on Fri., Sept. 8, with her 35-assist performance against Morgan State. Gerber now has 4,420 assists for her career after her 50-assist performance against Colorado. The former record of 3,812 assists was held by Cindy Atterberry, who graduated in 1993. Senior Annette Luyten also continues her climb up the MU record charts and is now in the No. 4 position in the career block/assists category with 221.

The Kreklows Eclipse the Century Mark
Head Coach Susan Kreklow and Associate Head Coach Wayne Kreklow have had great success in their coaching careers. They led Columbia College, an NAIA school here in Columbia, to two straight national championships and accumulated a six-year record of 461-81. In 1998 and 1999, the Cougars went a combined 85-0. In the Tigers Wed., Oct. 11 win over Kansas, the Kreklows picked up their 100th total victory in the past three years. It is rare for a husband and wife to be coaching the same team with such great success. But the Kreklow's are only one of the two husband-wife tandems on the Tiger staff. Assistant Coaches Deng Yang and Cheng Fung are also married.

Tigers Faced Nebraska's Seventh Woman
The Tiger volleyball team traveled to Nebraska on Sat., Sept. 16., to take on the Huskers at the NU Coliseum in Lincoln. Besides having to face the No. 1 team in the land on their home court, MU witnessed the 19th largest crowd recorded by the AVCA this season-a rowdy 4,167.

Four Tiger Volleyball Matches to
Be Broadcast on Radio Columbia, Mo. - The 16-2 University of Missouri Volleyball Team will have four of its matches broadcast during the remainder of the season. Through the joint efforts of the Premier Marketing Group, Ellis Copy Center, and Missouri Sports Properties, fans of the Tigers will be able to enjoy Tiger action on KWWC 90.5 FM.. Matches included in the package include the Wed., Oct. 11 match up with Kansas, the Wed., Oct. 18 match against the Buffaloes of Colorado, a rematch with No. 1 Nebraska on Wed., Oct. 25, and a Wed., Nov. 22 battle with Oklahoma. All matches are scheduled for 7:00 p.m. central time.