Nov. 7, 2003

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

-Listen To Game Action Here
-

Quickly...
Missouri will look to end a three-match losing streak on Saturday as Nebraska visits Columbia ... the Tigers are ranked No. 25 and enter the match with a 16-7 record and a 9-5 Big 12 Conference mark ... Nebraska is No. 10 in the latest poll and is 21-3 overall and 12-2 in the league ... Mizzou ended a 44-match losing streak to the Huskers with a 3-2 win in Lincoln last month ... MU lost the first two games of that match, before winning the next three for the match victory ... that win was the first for MU over Nebraska since 1982.

Scouting the Cornhuskers
Nebraska is currently second in the Big 12 Conference with a 12-2 conference record and a 21-3 overall mark. The Huskers are currently ranked No. 10 in the latest USA Today/AVCA Top 25 Coaches' Poll. NU lost two straight matches earlier this season as Kansas State and Mizzou each defeated the Cornhuskers. Since then, NU has won six straight, five of those being three-game sweeps. All three of its losses this season have come in five games. The Cornhuskers lead the Big 12 in kills, assists, blocks and aces per game in conference games this season. The MU-NU Series Missouri ended a 44-match losing streak to Nebraska by defeating the Huskers 3-2 in Lincoln last month. It was only the third win for MU in the series, as Nebraska owns a 56-3-1 lead in the all-time series. Prior to that win, the Tigers last victory in the series came in 1982. The first meeting between the two teams was in 1975, when Nebraska defeated Mizzou, 2-0.

A Look Back
For the third straight meeting, it took Mizzou and Kansas five games to decide a winner. But unlike the previous two times, it was KU who took the win on Wednesday. After Missouri took the first game of the match, Kansas came back to win the next two before MU won the fourth game to force a game five, where Kansas rallied to win and take the match victory. Despite hitting just .098 in the opening game of the match, Mizzou was able to take a 1-0 match lead with a 31-29 game one win. Down, 25-27 in the game, the Tigers closed out the win with a 6-2 run for the game victory. Game two was a different story from back-and-forth game one. Kansas jumped out to a 7-2 lead in game two and extended its lead to as many as nine. Missouri cut the lead to five at 20-15, but was unable to get any closer. In the third game, it was MU that jumped out to the early lead, scoring the first three points of the game. It held a four-point lead at 13-9. However, the Jayhawks came back to tie the score at 15 and then take the lead away from the Tigers. KU held on to the lead for the remainder of the game and took the 30-26 win and a 2-1 lead in the match. The Tigers again took the lead to start game four, but unlike the third game, they were able to hold on to the lead behind a .422 hitting percentage. Mizzou built an eight point lead at 15-7 and went on to take an eight-point win to force a fifth and deciding game. After KU scored the first point of game five, Missouri then rolled off nine straight points to hold a 9-1 lead. The Jayhawks then started an amazing comeback. With the help of two 4-0 runs, Kansas tied the scored at 13 then scored the final two points to close out the match. The loss was Missouri's first to KU in four matches and was the first for the Tigers at Lawrence since 1998.

Up Next
The Tigers will be back in action at the Hearnes Center at 7 p.m. on Wednesday against No. 5 Kansas State. Mizzou will then take to the road again as it faces Oklahoma next Saturday before returning home to take on Iowa State on Nov. 19.