Dec. 6, 2005
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No. 8 Missouri vs. No. 6 Hawaii - NCAA Regional Semifinal - State College, Pa.
Friday, December 9 - 3:00 p.m. CT
TV: KQFX (Fox 38), in Columbia
Video Webcast: hawaiiantelmedia.com ($9.95 purchase required)
Radio: ESPN Radio 1580 AM, KTGR, in Columbia
Audio Webcast: ktgr.com
Missouri (if advance) vs Penn State/Tennessee - NCAA Regional Final - State College, Pa.
Saturday, December 10 - 3:00 p.m. CT
TV: ESPNU
Radio: ESPN Radio 1580 AM, KTGR, in Columbia
Audio Webcast: ktgr.com
COLUMBIA, Mo.--The Mizzou women's volleyball team will leave for State College, Pa., on Wednesday in preparation of their date with No. 6 Hawaii in the regional semifinal round of the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers (24-4) will face a Hawaii (27-6) team that has won 21-consecutive matches, making their 13th-consective NCAA Tournament. Should the Tigers win Friday, they will play the winner of No. 2 Penn State and No. 17 Tennessee in the regional final, Saturday, at 3 p.m., central, live on ESPNU.
Scouting No. 6 Hawaii ...
The Rainbow Wahine of Hawai'I had a rough start to the season, going 1-3 in their first four matches, but they did face top-seven teams in each of those matchups, including two matches with regional-host Penn State. Since, Hawaii has won 21-consecutive matches coming into the regional, going through WAC play undefeated (now extending their winning streak versus conference opponents to 107) and now stand with a 27-6 overall record.
Getting Here ...
First Round, def. Texas State, 30-25, 30-18, 30-23
Second Round, def. No. 7 Texas, 19-30, 30-18, 30-21, 30-20
Vs. the Top 25 (3-5) ...
Aug 26, vs #1 Nebraska, L 0-3
Aug 27, vs. #5 Penn State, L 0-3
Sept 1, #7 USC, W 3-0
Sept 2, #5 Penn State, L 2-3
Sept 10, #10 UCLA, W 3-1
Sept 16, #2 Washington, L 0-3
Sept 17, #2 Washington, L 0-3
Dec 3, at No. 7 Texas, W 3-1
Head coach Dave Shoji is the winningest coach in NCAA Division I history with a .857 winning percentage having gone 897-156-1 in his 31 years at Hawaii.
Hawaii is ninth in the nation in blocks per game with 3.44, as senior Victoria Prince passes Hawaii with 1.59 bpg, ranking 14th in the nation and first in the WAC. Prince is also seventh in the nation with a .408 hitting percentage. Junior setter Kanoe Kaman'o is sixth in the nation with 13.82 assists per game.
Scouting No. 2 Penn State ...
The Nittany Lions went through the '05 campaign with a 31-2 record, sweeping Big Ten play in going 20-0. Penn State has lost only one game since September 24. Penn State's only losses of the season has came to No. 3 Stanford and at No. 1 Nebraska. PSU has won 25-straight matches. Penn State also went through the gauntlet of Big Ten play, defeating eight conference foes that were ranked in the top 25.
Getting Here ...
First Round, def. Binghampton, 30-15, 30-8, 30-10
Second Round, def. Long Island, 30-11, 30-27, 30-8
Vs. the Top 25 (11-2) ...
Aug 26, vs #3 Stanford, L 2-3
Aug 27, vs #4 Hawaii, W 3-0
Aug 31, vs #7 USC, W 3-1
Sept 2, at #4 Hawaii, W 3-2
Sept 11, at #1 Nebraska, L 0-3
Sept 24, #19 Purdue, W 3-2
Sept 28, at #18 Ohio State, W 3-0
Oct 8, at #8 Wisconsin, W 3-0
Oct 22, at #12 Minnesota, W 3-0
Oct 28, #11 Wisconsin, W 3-1
Nov 2, #19 Ohio State, W 3-0
Nov 11, at #14 Purdue, W 3-0
Nov 18, #19 Minnesota, W 3-0
Penn State is sixth in the nation in blocks per game (3.59) and hitting percentage (.313). Sophomore Melissa Walbridge sets sixth in the nation in hitting percentage and was first in the Big Ten with a .415 average. FIVE Nittany Lions were named to the AVCA All-Midwest Region team including senior setter Sam Tortorello (13.33 apg), senior libero Kaleena Walters (4.90 dpg), sophomore middle hitter Walbridge, freshman middle hitter Chrisa Harmotto (1.50 bpg, .356 hitting), and freshman outside hitter Nicole Fawcett (4.50 kpg, .326 hitting). In addition, Fawcett was named as an AVCA Midwest Region Freshman of the Year.
Scouting No. 17 Tennessee ...
The Lady Vols of Tennessee have won 12 of their last 13 matches. Overall, Tennessee is 23-8 and went 13-3 in SEC play this season. UT carried a 13-0 home record this season, but are 7-6 away from Knoxville.
Getting here ...
First Round, def. Jacksonville State, 30-23, 30-13, 30-28
Second Round, def. #17 Minnesota, 30-19, 24-30, 20-30, 30-27, 15-11
Vs. the Top 25 (3-3, won three straight) ...
Sept 4, at #21 Missouri, L 0-3
Sept 28, at #6 Louisville, L 2-3
Oct 7, at #5 Florida, L 0-3
Oct 30, #4 Florida, W 3-2
Nov 26, at #7 Notre Dame, W 3-2
Dec 3, #17 Minnesota, W 3-2
More Storylines That You Can Shake A Stick At
What can happen, oh, what can happen in State College this weekend for the Tigers. It will be cold outside, no doubt about that, but here are some other things that could be worth watching (yes, other than the game itself)
· Lindsey Hunter with 5,980 assists, will likely reach the 6,000-career mark, becoming the 17th person in NCAA history to do so
· Shen Danru's third game will give her another record, she would reach 440 career games played ... Danru is already Mizzou's all-time leader in kills, kills per game, aces, digs, attacks, and points
· Nicole Wilson stands at 111 block assists for the season ... Christi Myers' school record from 2001 is 114
· Should Mizzou defeat Hawaii, it will be the highest-ranked team a Missouri volleyball squad has ever defeated ... winning at No. 8 Nebraska in 2003 is the team's current top-ranked win ... by the way, the win would put Mizzou at 4-2 against the top 10 this year and 7-3 against the top 25
· Read down for more!
All-Time Series
Hawaii
This will be Hawaii and Missouri's first meeting all-time
Penn State
Penn State leads the all-time series 4-0, the Tigers have never even won a game in the four matches, last playing in 1998.
Tennessee
The Tigers first meeting with the Lady Vols happened this September. The Tigers swept Tennessee at home on September 4.
Three Tigers Named to AVCA All-Central Region Team
The American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) announced their All-Region teams late Tuesday evening. Three Tigers, Lindsey Hunter, Jessica Vander Kooi, and Nicole Wilson, were named to the Central Region first-team, marking the first time a Mizzou squad had landed at least three on the list.
Hunter (Papillion, Neb.) was named to the All-Central Region squad for the third consecutive season. The Tiger senior has lead the Big 12 in assists per game in each of her four years at Mizzou, becoming the first Big 12 student-athlete to finish a season leading the same statistical category in every year of eligibility. Her 14.14 assists per game this season paced her to 13.70 for her career, likely putting her sixth all-time in NCAA history in the category.
Vander Kooi (Hinton, Iowa) has been selected to her first All-Region team after having one of the best all-around seasons an outside hitter can have. The 2003 AVCA Central Region Freshman of the Year is now averaging 3.50 kills per game on .274 hitting, adding 2.67 digs per game, 0.31 aces per game, and 1.00 blocks per game. Most notably, Vander Kooi was a driving force in the Tigers two-game-deficit comeback at then-No. 24 Kansas State on October 26th, scoring on three-consecutive blocks to seal the match for the Tigers and nearly scored a quadruple-double on the night, scoring on 14 kills, nine blocks, adding 21 digs and eight assists. Vander Kooi is also the only Tiger to score a 20-20 on the season, grabbing 23 kills and 22 digs at No. 1 Nebraska.
Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) earned her first spot on an All-Region team with her outstanding middle-blocker play this season. Overall, Wilson had a .430 hitting percentage in 2005, which will break Mizzou's all-time season record and become one of the best 20 performances the nation has seen in the last five years. Her .430 hitting percentage for all games will also go down (more NCAA-Tournament play pending) as a new Big 12 record. Wilson, through the second-round of NCAA play, is third in the nation in hitting percentage. Wilson has also added 1.28 blocks per game this season.
The AVCA announces their All-America teams on Wednesday, December 14, with those student-athletes being honored on Friday, December 16 at the AVCA Convention in San Antonio in conjunction with the NCAA Volleyball Tournament Final Four.
Last Time Out ... Sweeping through Opening Rounds
Vs. Missouri State
Tied 17-17 in game three, the No. 10 Missouri Tigers didn't want to face a tough Missouri State team in the fourth game. By scoring 13 of the next 22 points, they didn't have to. The No. 10 Tigers outlasted the Missouri State Bears 30-26 in game three, and swept Friday night's first-round NCAA match at the Hearnes Center, 30-27, 30-18, 20-26.
With three kills apiece down the stretch, sophomore Na Yang and senior Shen Danru pushed the Tigers into the second-round of the NCAA tournament. The Tigers (23-4) will face the Arkansas Lady Razorbacks (21-11), tomorrow night at the Hearnes Center.
Missouri State, who showed a tough determination against the Tigers, fell to 24-8 for the season. The Bears from Springfield, Mo. managed to bring a strong contingent of followers in maroon as the crowd of 6,294, provided a partially divided yet enthusiastic audience for the match.
Mizzou set a personal NCAA tournament record, holding the Bears to a .179 hitting percentage, surpassing the previous NCAA tournament record of .231 set against Arkansas on Dec. 3, 2004. The Tigers managed a .364 hitting percentage, including a .452 average in game two.
Junior Jessica Vander Kooi and Shen led the Tigers with 13 kills apiece. Junior Nicole Wilson had a team high .526 hitting percentage. Wilson also tallied five blocks, second only to senior Lisa Boyd who nearly notched a double-double, with nine kills and 8 blocks. Senior setter Lindsey Hunter had 44 assists to go along with her four kills.
Missouri State had strong statistical performances out of Katie Werges, and Erin O'Connor who each had 13 kills. Sabrina Apker added eight kills, and setter Ashley Warren had 44 assists and a service ace.
The energy to begin game one was apparent, as both teams came out with a certain intensity that showed they were ready to play. Just as the Bears began to growl, the Tigers growled louder. With the score tied 11-11, Wilson's game changing kill allowed Mizzou to get rolling. Following a Missouri State error and two kills by Vander Kooi, Mizzou took control, 14-11. Missouri State struck back with a 4-0 run, knotting the match at 16. From there, the Tigers rattled off a 6-1 run, taking control 22-17 and never giving back the lead, going on to win 30-26.
Down 11-10 in game two, Mizzou broke open the game with five straight points including a service ace by Booth. The Bears and Tigers would trade blows, battling back and forth in front of a raucous crowd, before Mizzou finally seized control of the game, wrestling away 11 of 15 points from the Bears, allowing Mizzou to coast to a 30-18, win.
Just as the Tigers began to smell blood, they went in for the kill. Beginning game three on an 8-3 run, the Tigers got excellent play from Jessica Vander Kooi, who added two kills, and Abbie Booth, who managed to slip a service ace seamlessly in between Missouri State defenders.
Sensing their tournament lives on the line, Missouri State rallied to a 9-4 scoring run, highlighted by a service ace from Warren and two kills from Sara Thomas. However, it wasn't enough, as Mizzou outlasted the Bears down the stretch. A block by seniors Hunter and Boyd sealed the victory and the date with the Lady Razorbacks in the second round.
Vs. Arkansas
The No. 10 Missouri Tigers held all the cards and all the aces Saturday night in second-round NCAA action against Arkansas. A season-high 14 service aces lifted the Tigers past the Lady Razorbacks, 30-25, 30-16, 30-11, in a three game sweep. The win advances Mizzou to the sweet-16 round for the first in the team's history.
The service aces set a personal NCAA tournament record for Mizzou (24-4) who moves on to face the winner of No.7 Hawaii and Texas in State College, Penn. Arkansas fell to 21-12 on the season.
Junior Abbie Booth set a Tiger NCAA tournament record with six service aces, tying her personal best for the regular season, set Sept. 14, against Iowa State. The team's 14 service aces, shatters the previous Mizzou NCAA tournament record of seven, set against, Arkansas on Dec. 12, 2004.
In addition to the aces, Mizzou also set a Tiger NCAA tournament match record for hitting percentage, .505. The Tigers held the Lady Razorbacks to a .226 hitting percentage.
Mizzou had nearly five players with double-digit kill totals. Sophomore Na Yang led the way with 13, and was followed by senior Shen Danru (11 kills), senior Lisa Boyd (10 kills,) junior Jessica Vander Kooi (10 kills, 2 service aces), and junior Nicole Wilson (9 kills, 1 service ace).
Senior setter Lindsey Hunter had 46 assists, and also tallied three kills and four service aces in the sweep. Sophomores Kele Brewer and Christiana Lawrence led Arkansas with 10 and eight kills consecutively. Despite the strong effort from the Lady Razorbacks, Mizzou's service aces and 57-team kills proved to be too much.
Tied 10-10 in game one, the Tigers scored five straight, relying on two service aces from Booth, as well as kills from Wilson and Vander Kooi, to pull ahead 15-10. The Lady Razorbacks made sure the lead wouldn't last long, responding with a 6-1 run highlighted by two Brewer kills to tie the score at 16. Mizzou answered, scoring 12 of the next 17 points, aided by two kills apiece from Na and Vander Kooi. Again, Arkansas refused to give up, notching four straight points in the face of defeat. Mizzou senior Shen Danru's kill shut the door on game one, 30-25.
As the momentum began to shift, the Tigers ran with it, leading almost all of game two, and forcing a 19-10 lead on the Lady Razorbacks on the strength of two service aces by Vander Kooi and a game high five kills by Boyd. Down the stretch of game two, the Lady Razorbacks could draw no closer than 10 points behind. Late game service aces from Hunter and Booth propelled the Tigers to 30-16 game two victory.
By the time Arkansas scored their first point of game three, Mizzou had already scored seven. Three early service aces from Booth paved the way for a 9-2 run to open the third game. This forced the Lady Razorbacks behind what would become an insurmountable deficit. An avalanche of Tiger kills and service aces, and a Mizzou NCAA tournament game record for hitting percentage (.640) allowed the Tigers to take game three in dominant fashion, 30-11.
A crowd of 2,490 came out to witness the Mizzou sweep. The Tigers will now take their show on the road, heading east to the campus of Penn State University for their match next Friday.
Three Tigers Named All-Big 12 ... Ailes is Big 12's Libero of the Year
The Big 12 Conference announced their post-season women's volleyball honorees last Monday. Missouri was well represented in the honors as three Tigers were named All-Big 12 with sophomore Tatum Ailes named Big 12 Libero of the Year. Senior Lindsey Hunter and junior Jessica Vander Kooi were placed on the first team with junior Nicole Wilson given honorable mention honors.
Ailes (Bellevue, Neb.) becomes the first non-Kansas State student-athlete to claim the Libero of the Year accolade. KSU players have swept the award since its inception in 2002. Ailes paced the league in conference-only digs with 4.08 per game to lead Missouri to its best conference record in Big 12 history (16-4) and the highest-winning percentage (22-4/.846) in school annals. She accounted for 302 of the Tigers' Big 12-leading 1,181 digs. In addition, Ailes is Mizzou's current all-time leader in digs per game (4.10). Ailes has also proven to be an emotional force on the floor for the Tigers and has battled with many bumps and bruises and pain throughout the season, being a rock for the Mizzou squad.
Sweeping the Top-10s
So, after not ever sweeping a top-10 team in the history of Mizzou Volleyball, this 2005 squad decided to change that. It started with the second match of the season, as a No. 21 Tiger team swept then-No. 9 Tennessee in Columbia on Sunday, September 4, immediately gaining attention on the national scene. So much attention in fact that the pollsters pushed the Tigers to a No. 14 ranking the next day. But, another top-10 opponent in then-No. 9 Wisconsin was on the week's docket, as the Tigers traveled to Bozeman, Mont., to take on the Badgers on that next Saturday. The Tigers swept Wisconsin and moved to the top 10 themselves for the first time in school history.
On November 20, No. 10 Texas came to town and the then-No. 11 Tigers took care of business in straight sets, and a result bounced back into the top 10.
In those three matches, some Tigers have emerged as immediate stars to the Tigers' hit parade. The Tigers averaged 19.2 kills per game in those sweeps on a .307 hitting percentage. A huge part of that was because of the immaculate setting by senior Lindsey Hunter who has averaged 16.56 assists per game in the team's sweeps. Offensively, Na Yang has averaged an insane 5.11 kills per game in those matches with a .323 hitting percentage to boot. Senior Lisa Boyd has averaged 1.33 blocks per game in those sweeps.
Milestones Achieved and Yet to Go
Done
* Lindsey Hunter played in the 400th game of her career versus Colorado on October 29
* Hunter eclipsed the 5,500-career assist mark versus Colorado on October 29
* Hunter had her 100th-career 40-plus assist match at Oklahoma on November 5
* Hunter also had her 40th-career double-double with 47 assists and 12 digs at Oklahoma on November 5
* Hunter also became the seventh Tiger in Mizzou history to reach the 1,000 career-dig mark
* Jessica Vander Kooi became the eighth Tiger all-time to record 250 blocks in a career
* Lisa Boyd played in the 100th match of her career at No. 1 Nebraska on November 13
* Boyd became the third Tiger to reach the 300-career block mark at the regular-season finale with Texas A&M on November 26.
Plenty to be Thankful For ... An Early Lookback at 2005
Sure, we haven't completed the season, but this is a good time to set back and reflect a little on the season that has already unfolded with many, many storylines.
Team Streaks/Trends
* Mizzou went unscathed in non-conference play, winning all six matches in sweeps, going 18-0 in games, including in wins over then-No. 9 Tennessee and then-No. 9 Wisconsin.
* The Tigers won 21 consecutive games to start the season, the longest-such streak since 2000 (won 24 games consecutive)
* Mizzou also won 12 consecutive matches to begin the season (ending with a four-game loss to No. 1 Nebraska), marking the team's longest winning stretch and best season start since 1982.
* The Tigers set a new school record, winning six-consecutive conference matches (during the start of conference season)
* Mizzou also went on a five-match road winning streak during the season, tying the team's record set in 1982.
* Mizzou has currently went 6-3 against top 25 teams, capturing a new school record in wins over top-25 teams in a season (old record was 4 in 2004)
* For the fifth time in six years the Tigers reached the 20-win mark, capturing No. 20 in a sweep at home over then-No. 10 Texas on November 20.
* The Tigers in 22 wins have swept 16 matches in three games
* With 16 conference wins, the Tigers set a new school record in that category
* The team's current winning percentage will undoubtedly break the school's current all-time record ... making the 2005 Tigers, the winningest Mizzou squad all-time
Monumental Wins
* On September 4, the Tigers swept then-No. 9 Tennessee at home, recording their first sweep over a top-10 team in school history, winning only their second all-time over a top-10 team
* In Bozeman, Mont., the Tigers defeated then-No. 9 Wisconsin, marking the Tigers' second sweep over a top-10 team in a week's time
* On September 16, Mizzou defeated Texas A&M in College Station for the first time in school history, the first in 10 tries.
* Kansas State had won nine-consecutive matches over the Tigers coming into this season, and that streak was snapped on September 24 as Mizzou won at home in a three-game sweep.
* For the first time since 1993, Mizzou also defeated then-No. 24 K-State in Manhattan, winning in five games, coming back from a two-game deficit ... the match win was also only the Tigers fifth road win all-time versus a top-25 team ... the K-State match ended with junior Jessica Vander Kooi scoring on three consecutive blocks.
* On November 20, Mizzou recorded their third sweep of the season and third all-time over a top-10 team with a three-game smashing over then-No. 10 Texas in front of 4,012 Tiger fans ... in addition, Texas has won 15-of-16 entering the match, and the Tigers stopped a nine-match Longhorn winning streak, but extended Mizzou's home winning-streak over Texas at home to six.
The Close Calls
* On November 13, Mizzou visited No. 1 Nebraska ... in front of the Huskers 67th-consecutive sellout, Missouri took games one and two, marking the first time in the all-time series that Tigers have went up 2-0 ... but, Nebraska won the last three games, winning only their second match all-time when coming back from two games behind
Team Statistical Dealings
* On September 21, the Tigers held host Colorado to zero blocks in a three-game sweep, conversely the Tigers recorded a season-high 18 blocks on the night ... in the same match, the Tigers went the entire third game with committing a hitting error, hitting a season-high .654 in the frame
* At home versus Baylor the Tigers hit a season high .486 in the match, conversely the Bears had a Tiger-opponent season-high percentage of .337
* In the sweep at home of Texas on November 20 the Tigers hit over .300 in each game
Crowding the Hearnes Center
* On October 5, 7,298 Tiger fans came to the Hearnes Center to watch the then-No. 7 Tigers take on No. 1 Nebraska.
* Mizzou has also grew their average season attendance by 55% from 2004's 1,460 average ... the Tigers drew 4,012 fans in an November 20 match versus Texas, 3,699 fans in an October 15 match against Kansas, 2,571 fans in a October 29 match against Colorado, and 2,438 fans in a September 24 match against Kansas State
* Five of Mizzou's top-six all-time crowds have now come from the 2005 season.
Other Firsts
* The October 5 match versus No. 1 Nebraska was the first all-time televised from the Hearnes Center ... the Missouri Sports Network aired the match on a tape-delay basis on local UPN station KZOU and televised the match live in Kansas City on MetroSports, who also produced the broadcast.
* For the first time in Mizzou volleyball history, the team was ranked in the national top 10, starting on September 12 and remaining there for seven-consecutive weeks ... the team peaked at No. 7 in the country and was at that spot for three weeks (October 3, 10, 17 polls) ... the teams' previous all-time-high ranking before 2005 was 18th, occurring in 2003 ... the Tigers re-entered the top 10 after sweeping then-No. 10 Texas on November 22
* Also for the first time in Tiger volleyball history, the team ranked in the top 10 in attendance, peaking on October 31 with a sixth-place national ranking.
* The team also reached the top five for the first time in school history in the RPI. Their previous high was the 2004 final index when the team placed 24th.
Records Broken
* Lindsey Hunter broke Mizzou's all-time assist record previously held by Heather Gerber (4,954) on September 16 at then-No. 15 Texas A&M
* Hunter also became the first Tiger to jump over the 5,000-assist mark, doing so at Colorado on September 21.
* Shen Danru became the Tigers' all-time digs leader, topping Narron Branson (1,149) at Texas Tech on October 1.
* Danru jumped over Buhlig (163) on October 5 versus No. 1 Nebraska in the all-time service aces category.
* Danru became Mizzou's all-time kills leader, jumping over Yvette Buhlig (1,478) on October 12 at then-No. 18 Texas
* Danru also became Mizzou's all-time scorer over Christi Myers (1,814) at Oklahoma on November 5.
* Nicole Wilson became the current Tiger all-time leader in hitting percentage
* Wilson also became the current Tiger all-time leader in blocks per game (1.08 - as of November 22)
Individual Feats
* On September 5, Lindsey Hunter was named Big 12 Player of the Week for the first time in her career after recording a 100-assist week in sweeps over Utah and then-No. 9 Tennessee.
* Hunter was also named Tournament MVP for both the Tiger Invitational and the Holiday Inn Classic
* Hunter nearly record a triple-double twice in the season ... on October 22 at Iowa State she recorded 54 assists, 10 digs and eight kills ... on October 29 versus Colorado, tallied 59 assists, 13 digs, and eight kills.
* Jessica Vander Kooi has recorded three double-doubles over top-25 teams ... she nearly recorded a quadruple-double when playing at No. 24 Kansas State on October 26, recording 14 kills, 21 digs, eight assists, and nine blocks
* Vander Kooi racked up 23 kills (the team's season high) along with 22 digs in the five-game loss at No. 1 Nebraska ... her 23 were the most by a Husker opponent for the season ... marked the second 20-20 match all-time of Vander Kooi's career
* Abbie Booth began Big 12 play with 12 service aces in four three-game sweeps, averaging one per game.
* Shen Danru recorded 17 kills on .326 hitting, adding 19 digs and four blocks at Kansas State on October 26.
* Lisa Boyd - at Colorado on September 21, recorded 11 kills with only one error (.556) in road sweep, also tallying eight blocks in the match ... against No. 1 Nebraska on October 5, went 12-2-20 (.500) and recorded five blocks ... at Iowa State on October 22, nearly went errorless going 13-1-26 (.462), adding five blocks.
* Tatum Ailes - recorded 12 digs in each of the Tiger sweeps over then-No. 9 Wisconsin and then-No. 9 Tennessee ... had 41 serve receptions against No. 1 Nebraska, committing only one error, even after severely jamming elbow in game four
* Na Yang has scored a career-high 21 kills three times this season (October 1 at Texas Tech, October 26 at Kansas State, and November 20 versus Texas) ... has recorded career highs in blocks (6) versus Kansas on October 15 and October 29 versus Colorado.
* The Texas 21 kill total from Yang was only in three games (7.00 kpg), accompanied by a .372 hitting percentage
* Nicole Wilson was named Big 12 & National Player of the Week on September 26 after recording a week of errorless play in sweeps at Colorado and at home versus then-No. 17 Kansas State, hitting .719 over the stretch with 17 kills (3.83 kpg), 5.25 ppg, 2.83 bpg, and 0.67 dpg ... in the K-State match on September 24, Wilson record 11 kills on 13 attempts (also having nine blocks), recording a conference-season high hitting percentage of .846 ... went three matches in a row without committing an error in late September going 34-of-53 (.642) over the stretch
Awards & Honors
* Lindsey Hunter and Jessica Vander Kooi were named to the Preseason All-Big 12 Team
* Lindsey Hunter was named Big 12 Player of the Week on September 5.
* Nicole Wilson was named Big 12 Player of the Week followed by being named AVCA National Player of the Week on September 26th (details above)
* The following were named members of the Academic All-Big 12 Team: FIRST TEAM: Abbie Booth, Lisa Boyd, Shen Danru, Jessica Vander Kooi, and Na Yang; SECOND TEAM: Lindsey Hunter
The Comeback at K-State (October 26) ... A Vander Kooi Cooling
It was a volleyball match that resembled a Rocky movie on October 26, as the No. 8 Tigers won in Manhattan over No. 24 K-State for the first time since 1993, coming back, from two games down to win the match.
Not to mention game five, when each team went "punch"-for-"punch", like the Round 11 montage in Rocky IV, tying the score a match-high eight times in frame, ultimately tying for the last time at 11-11. That's when the "Eye of the Tiger", in this case, junior Jessica Vander Kooi stepped in. After throwing down a kill off a block, giving the Tigers a side-out and the 12-11 lead, Vander Kooi proceed to build a wall at the net that lasted the remainder of the match. Wildcat Sandy Werner, who had 16 kills up-to-that-point, tried to bust through the wall on three successive rallies, and was stopped each time by Vander Kooi in a block assist or solo block.
Here's point-by-point how the end of that match went:
Score: 11-11
K-State serve (Rita Lilliom), kill by Vander Kooi (assist by Lindsey Hunter) ... score MU 12-11, MU side-out
MU serve (Nicole Wilson), block by Lisa Boyd and Jessica Vander Kooi (attack error by Sandy Werner) ... score MU 13-11
TIMEOUT K-STATE
MU serve (Nicole Wilson), solo block by Vander Kooi (attack error by Sandy Werner) ... score MU 14-11, Mizzou match point
MU serve (Nicole Wilson), block by Lisa Boyd and Vander Kooi (attack error by Sandy Werner) ... score MU 15-11 ... Mizzou wins match
Vander Kooi (Hinton, Iowa) grabbed her eighth double-double of the season, and her fourth over a ranked opponent, notching 14 kills and 21 digs, adding nine total blocks (three on the final three points alone) to tie a career-high in the category. Vander Kooi nearly had a quadruple-double as she also had eight assists on the evening.
Columbia, Lovin' The Volleyball ... Mizzou Sixth Nationally in Attendance
By the looks of the Hearnes Center on October 5th versus Nebraska, with the Tiger crowd of 7,298 roaring to its loudest volume seen at a volleyball match, Columbia, Mo. - the middle-sized town in the middle of the middle-west, may well become a volleyball town in the near future. With a steady increase of average attendance since the Kreklows' arrival in 2000, the 2005 crowd average may well skyrocket. Earlier in the season, Mizzou hosted K-State and 2,438 fans watched that match, the then-second largest crowd in team history.
The 7,298 crowd nearly tripled Mizzou's previous attendance record of 2,638 set last year in a win over Texas A&M. In fact, Mizzou's total attendance through five home matches prior to the Nebraska match was around 6,208. The October 5 crowd overly doubled that figure.
In 2004, Mizzou reached its highest national-attendance ranking before '05, ranking 19th in the country with a 1,460 average.
The Monkey Off Thy Back
While wins over Texas A&M in College Station and an early-conference-season sweep over Kansas State may have seemed like normal occurrences in the Tigers' fast start to the season, they actually were victories that were a long-time coming. Mizzou had never won in College Station in nine previous tries before the Tigers four-game win over Texas A&M. Kansas State had the Tigers' number previous to their meeting on September 24, as K-State had won nine straight over Mizzou before the three-game Tiger sweep. Another monkey was thrown from the train when the Tigers defeated K-State for the second time this season in a five-game thriller in Manhattan. The win was the Tigers first in the "Little Apple" since 1993.
The stubborn monkey of the bunch is of the Cornhusker variety. Mizzou has lost 50 of the last 51 meetings with Nebraska dating back to 1982. Mizzou's lone win in the stretch came in 2003 when the Tigers stunned then-No. 8 NU in Lincoln, winning in a five-game thriller after losing games one and two.
If You're Goin' To Play (well, anywhere) ... You've Got to Have A Good SETTER on Hand
Hunter Becomes Mizzou's All-Time Assists Leader ... Also joins 5,000-assist club
At the end of game three in the Tigers' 3-1 win over No. 15 Texas A&M in College Station, Missouri setter Lindsey Hunter had exactly 44 assists on the night, putting her at 4,958 in her career. At that point, Hunter became Mizzou's all-time assist leader, passing Heather Gerber (1997-2000).
Adding 47 assists in last the September 21 sweep of Colorado in Boulder, Hunter became the first Tiger in the 5,000-assist club, standing at 5,015.
Hunter's name will be prominent in the NCAA record book once the season is done, and one thing that Hunter is getting closer and closer to doing is cracking the top five all-time in NCAA history in assists per game. Here's a list of the current standings:
Career Assists Per Game - NCAA Division I all-time
1) Kelly Campbell, Colorado (96-99) ... 14.45 apg ... 431 games, 6,228 assists
2) Erika Selsor, UCLA (98-01) ... 14.01 apg ... 445 games, 6,234 assists
3) Roz Pelayo, Santa Clara (97-00) ... 14.01apg ... 409 games, 5,732 assists
4) Emily Sallee, Ball State (97-00) ... 13.84 apg ... 463 games, 6,408 assists
5) Kele Eveland, Georgia Tech (00-03) ... 13.83 apg ... 483 games, 6,464 assists
6) Lindsey Hunter, Missouri (02-05) ... 13.72 apg ... 436 games, 5,980 assists
Takin' Care Of Business...
The Tigers lost game one at No. 15 Texas A&M 31-29 in mid-September, marking the first game-loss for Mizzou after seven-straight match sweeps. Winning 21 games straight, the Tigers swept through all seven non-conference opponents including then-No. 9 Tennessee and No. 9 Wisconsin. Mizzou's team-record for consecutive games won is 24, set in 2000. In this year's stretch was two sweeps over top-10 teams in Tennessee and Wisconsin, marking the first Tiger sweeps over top-10 teams.
It's Baby Time!
The Tiger volleyball family has a new member. Assistant coach Deng Yang delivered a 7 lb., 14 oz., baby boy on Wednesday (August 31st) at 5:15 p.m. Yang, and husband, Chen Feng, named the new Tiger, Logan Chen.
The Ol' Switcheroo
In their sixth season as coaches of the University of Missouri Women's Volleyball Team, Wayne and Susan Kreklow are swapping positions. After five seasons working as Associate Head Coach of the Missouri Women's volleyball team, Wayne Kreklow will take on the title of Head Coach while his wife Susan will assume the position of Associate Head Coach to the team. The Kreklow's have been very successful in their previous seasons at Missouri, turning the Missouri Women's Volleyball team into a force in the Big 12. Before coming to Missouri, the Kreklows were co-head coaches at Columbia College for both the men's and women's teams.
Since Missouri does not proclaim the Kreklows as co-head coaches, the NCAA will consider their win-loss records separately. Susan's win-loss record stands at 109-46 through five seasons. The .703 winning percentage is the best in school history for a coach's career. Prior to Missouri, Susan was head coach of Columbia College's women's team from 1990 to 1993 and co-head coach with Wayne from 1994 to 1999. As a women's coach, Susan accumulated a winning record of 565-132 (.811) over 15 seasons. Susan was also co-head coach with Wayne for Columbia College's men from 1997 to 1999, giving Susan an overall record of 618-156 (.798).
Wayne brings to Missouri a 267-29 (.902) women's head coaching record from his days with Susan at Columbia College which will stand as his NCAA-official coaches' record through six seasons. Added to a 53-24 (.688) record from coaching Columbia College's men's team, Wayne is 320-53 (.858) overall as a head coach. Prior to joining his wife at Columbia College in 1994 as co-head coach, Kreklow was an assistant coach at Missouri under Craig Sherman for five years.
The Kreklow Revolution
In their previous five seasons at Missouri, Wayne and Susan Kreklow have revolutionized Tiger Volleyball. In their first season at Missouri in 2000, the Tigers jumped from ranking ninth in the Big 12 to second and Susan Kreklow was named the 2000 Big 12 Coach of the Year. In 2002, the Tigers finished No. 20 in the USA Today/AVCA Coaches Poll, the highest year ending ranking in Missouri history. Through the Kreklows' leadership, Missouri has been to five consecutive NCAA tournaments, certainly a different look from the years of winning only four to five conference games a season.
Super Seniors
For three seasons, they have dominated the Big 12 conference with their abilities to hit, assist, and kill and as Lisa Boyd, Shen Danru, and Lindsey Hunter enter their final season at Missouri, they show no signs of slowing down on or off the court. Since coming to Missouri, Lisa Boyd has been a two-time Academic All-Big 12. In 2004, she was the Big 12 leader in hitting percentage and took over the Missouri record for hitting percentage with an astounding .384. Shen Danru has also left her mark on Missouri, being named, in each of her three seasons, to the Academic All-Big 12 and the All-Big 12 teams. She is not only the school record holder in career kills per game and attacks but last season moved into second on the all-time list of service aces. Not to be outdone by her senior counterparts, Lindsey Hunter has added her own touch to Missouri Volleyball as a two-time USA National A2 team member and a two-time All-Big 12 First Team selection. Hunter has led the Big 12 in \assists since joining the Tigers and in 2004, was named Academic All-Big 12. Already in 2005, Hunter has been named to the Preseason All-Big 12 team. No doubt the 2005 season holds many more accomplishments for the three super seniors as they prepare to say goodbye to the Tigers and as Missouri prepares to say goodbye to three of its volleyball legends.
Spanning the Globe
In 2001, Missouri added its first ever Eastern Hemisphere player with Shen Danru, a freshman out of Shanghai Sports School who had been part of China's Junior National Team in 1999. Since beginning her career at Missouri, Danru has set a new school record in career kills per game and attacks. Following in Danru's footsteps is Na Yang, a sophomore from Shan Dong, China who played with Danru on the 1998 Chinese World Teenage Championship Team. A promising player, Yang started in 12 games as a freshman and had double-doubles in kills and digs last year in four matches. In 2005, Missouri adds two more China natives to its team in Lei Wang and Yi Zhang. Wang played twice with the Chinese Junior National team and attended Shanghai Sports School. Zhang was named MVP of the Chinese Youth Volleyball team in 2000 and in her first semester at Missouri in the winter of 2005 had a GPA over 3.7 and topped over 300 students to be at the top of her math section. For 10 days in May 2005, the Missouri Volleyball team visited China, playing matches against Bei Hang University and Beijing University.
Yep, They're Smart Too
In 2004, seven members of the Missouri Volleyball Team were Academic All-Big 12 Honorees and in 2005, the team will welcome back six of those seven. 2004 was the first time senior Lindsey Hunter, juniors Jessica Vander Kooi, Abbie Booth and Nicole Wilson were named Academic All-Big 12 along with two and three-time honorees, seniors Lisa Boyd and Shen Danru. Boyd was an honoree in 2003, Danru in 2002 and 2003. In the winter semester of 2005, the Tigers set a new team record with a team term GPA of 3.29, beating out the previous semester's record of 3.27.