Oct. 3, 2003

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Quickly...
Mizzou begins a two-match road trip at Iowa State on Saturday... the Tigers are 11-3 on the year and 4-1 in the Big 12 Conference and are coming off a thrilling 3-2 win over Kansas on Wednesday... ISU enters the matchup with an 8-7 record and is 1-4 in the Big 12 after recording its first conference win of the season on Wednesday, a 3-1 victory over Texas Tech... Mizzou's win over KU on Wednesday was its first five-game match of the year... Mary Lauren Smith had a season-high 24 kills and Shen Danru had her seventh double-double of the year against the Jayhawks... Jessica Vander Kooi and Lindsey Hunter also had double-doubles... MU has won the last 12 matches against Iowa State with the last Cyclone win coming in November of 1996.

Scouting the Cyclones
Iowa State enters Saturday's matchup coming off its first victory in Big 12 Conference play. The Cyclones are 8-7 on the year and 1-4 in the Big 12. They defeated Texas Tech on Wednesday, 3-1 (18-30, 30-27, 30-22, 30-21) in Lubbock, Texas. ISU opened the season with five straight wins, but has since dropped seven of the last ten. Brittany Dalager leads the Cyclone attack with a 3.54 kills per game average, followed by Renae Pruess who holds a 3.32 kills per game mark. Dalager also leads the team in digs with an average of 3.30 digs per game. Linda Crum is in her fifth season as the Iowa State head coach and has a 27-101 record with the Cyclones. Last year ISU finished 10-22 on the year and 1-19 in the Big 12 Conference. Five starters and 10 letterwinners from last year's squad returns to ISU this season.

The MU-ISU Series
The all-time series between Missouri and Iowa State stands at a 26-26 tie heading into Saturday's matchup. Mizzou has been dominate in the series as of late, winning the last 12 meetings. The last Cyclone win came in November of 1996. After the Tigers picked up a three-game sweep in the first match last season, MU and ISU went five games to decide the second meeting. Mizzou prevailed in the match, taking a 15-11 win in game five. MU coach Susan Kreklow has never lost to Iowa State in her six career meetings.

A Look Back
Missouri volleyball won its third straight match over Kansas and has won six of the last seven meetings after defeating KU 3-2 (30-16, 31-33, 30-28, 26-30, 15-12). Three Tigers had double-doubles and Mary Lauren Smith had a season-high 24 kills to lead MU. The Tigers took a dominating win in the opening game, finishing the game on a 7-2 run. Mizzou faced four game points in game two before the Jayhawks finally took the victory, 33-31. The Jayhawks took lead in the third game before MU rallied back. The Tigers took the lead at 24-23 and held on for the victory. Kansas forced a game five by coming from behind to win the fourth game. In game five, Kansas jumped out to a 6-1 lead. However, Mizzou followed with a 5-1 run to get back into the game and took its first lead at 9-8. MU then closed out the match with a 6-2 run to take the game-five win. Smith's 24 kills led the team as Mizzou hit .306 on the night. Shen Danru had her seventh double-double of the season with 17 kills and a career-high 20 digs. She has had a double-double in four of the Tigers five Big 12 Conference matches. Lindsey Hunter had her first double-double of the year and the 11th of her career with a season-high 64 assists to go along with a career-high 17 digs. Jessica Vander Kooi had her first career double-double and was just one assists away from a triple-double with 12 kills, 16 digs and nine assists.

Up Next
The Tigers remain on the road next Wednesday as they take on Kansas State at 8 p.m. in Manhattan, Kan. MU's next home match in on Oct. 11 against Texas. Game time for that match is 2 p.m.