Aug. 28, 2006
COLUMBIA, Mo.--The No. 13-nationall ranked Missouri Volleyball team opens their home schedule with a Tuesday-night match with UALR, beginning at 6:30 p.m., in the Hearnes Center. Starting at 5:30 p.m., in the Hearnes Fieldhouse, the First-Serve Tailgate will commence. All Mizzou students are invited to attend where they will become members of VolleyZou, get free food and a T-shirt. In addition, several courts will be set for some of the Tiger students to test their own skills in the sport. Tuesday's match is one of four the Tigers will play this week.
UALR (Ark.-Little Rock) at No. 13 Missouri
Tuesday, August 29, 6:30 p.m. (CT)
TV/Radio: KCOU, 89.5 FM in Columbia, kcou.mu.org
Online: Video webcast, mutigers.com, Mizzou All-Access
Coaches: Missouri (2-1) - Wayne Kreklow (Drake '80) ...
292-34 overall (8th season), 25-5 at Mizzou (2nd season), 134-51 with wife at Mizzou (7th season)
UALR - Van Compton, 319-219 overall and at UALR (18th season)
Series Matchup: Mizzou leads all-time series, 4-0
Scouting UALR ...
The UALR Trojans take on the Missouri Tigers after going 2-2 last weekend, defeating Western Carolina before losing two straight to Ole Miss and Pittsburgh. The UALR ended the weekend with a 3-1 victory over Southeast Missouri.
In the first four matches, OH Amila Caracovic led the team with 70 kills while L/DS Ana Carolina Buccini led the team with 5.53 digs per game.
The Trojans, who finished 18-12 last season, have only three returning starters from the squad that placed third in the East Division of the Sun Belt Conference.
Head Coach Van Compton returns for his 18th season and has an overall record of 317-217 at UALR.
Missouri last met with UALR in 2002 and is 4-0 all time against the Trojans.
Tigers on CSTV This Weekend ...
Saturday's match at Notre Dame as part of the Shamrock Invitational will be aired on CSTV as part of the AVCA Match of the Week on a tape-delay basis starting Sunday at 5 p.m. (CT). While the match will actually take place at 6 p.m. (CT) on Saturday (the exact start time of the Murray State-Mizzou football game), Tiger fans can still catch the volleyball squad on Sunday.
Jules' Jumpin' Jives ...
True freshman Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) made quite an impression this past weekend with her killer jump serves at the Long Beach State Invitational. In the final match of the weekend, against Villanova, Klein got her first start of her career, and, boy, was it a good one. Against the Wildcats, Klein scored on seven service aces, the most a Tiger has accumulated in a match since 2003. In addition, Klein added six kills and two blocks to score 15 total points in Mizzou's three-game match. Only six other times in school history has a person scored seven or more aces in a match, and only twice in three-game matches.
Klein leads all in the Big 12 with 12 total service aces, averaging an inane 1.50 aces per game, that's twice as many as Iowa State senior Nicole Lorenzen, second in the conference, scored in the opening weekend.
California, Rest In Peace ...
Simultaneous release ... I love that song! ... Anyway, the Tigers trip to Long Beach, Calif., had a roller-coaster like feel to it. First, the Tigers swept Alabama State in a 30-8, 30-9, 30-8, drubbing which marked Mizzou's largest total margin of victory against any opponent in the rally-scoring era (2001).
The same day, six hours later, the Tigers faced a Long Beach crowd of 2,000-plus and the things didn't go as well. Mizzou lost that match 16-30, 18-30, 27-30. The young Tiger squad, rotating as many as four freshmen into the lineup at anytime, showed moments of brilliance, but was thwarted by a 49ers squad that looked in mid-season form. LBSU, a perennial power, having to have went to 19-straight NCAA Tournaments and having a top-25 RPI a year ago showed that they will most definitely have a top-20 to top-15 ranking within the season.
The young squad bounced back the next day, sweeping Villanova in a convincing 30-20, 30-20, 30-27 fashion. The Tiger offense looked much more organized and composed. The defense quicker and larger at the net, added with a Julianna Klein serving masterpiece pulled the Tigers back together and gives them a lot of momentum heading into this week.
Tigers Picked Third in Big 12, 13th in the Nation ...
The coaches of the Big 12 picked Mizzou third in the preseason poll behind Nebraska and Texas. The Tigers finished the 2005 season third, behind Nebraska (19-1) and Texas (17-3) in the Big 12 with a 16-4 record (a new school record in conference wins). Nebraska was dealt with bad news to start the '06 campaign when their 2005 AVCA National Player of the Year Christina Houghtelling had to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery in the off season. Texas, ranked No. 8 in the national-preseason poll, return everyone from their '05 squad, adding Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year Ashley Engle and NCAA high-jump Champion Destinee Hooker.
Mizzou was picked 13th in the AVCA Preseason Coaches' Top 25, earning the program's highest preseason ranking all-time. Last season, the Tigers were picked 21st and finished eighth in the final poll.
Non-Conference Schedule Stacked ...
The Tigers will face five NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago in a non-conference schedule that is stacked with perennial powerhouse teams. As Missouri continues its quest to be amongst the elite-of-the-elite, they will face No. 2 Penn State, No. 6 Santa Clara, and No. 21 Notre Dame in three-consecutive matches adding Long Beach State who is always a threat and Valparaiso, winners of the Mid-Continent Conference in 2005.
On the Road Again ...
Nine of the Tigers' first 10 matches will be away from the comfort of the Hearnes Center. The crowd that ranked sixth-nationally in 2005 will have to wait for their Mizzou squad as all three weekend tournaments will be on the road. In addition, Mizzou opens the Big 12 season on the road with a Wednesday matchup at Colorado. At least the SID is happy, as his frequent flyer miles will accumulate quickly.
Suddenly Seniors ...
All of the sudden, Tigers Jessica Vander Kooi, Nicole Wilson, and Abbie Booth are seniors. The trio has already accumulated quite a resume together and would like to add a successful 2006 run to it. Wilson earned AVCA honorable mention All-America honors a year ago for her amazing play at MB. In 2005, Wilson averaged 3.16 kpg on a .415 hitting percentage, setting a new Big 12 record in the category, adding 1.26 bpg. Wilson was named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team and was named AVCA National Player of the Week during the 2005 season.
Vander Kooi has been an amazing all-around player for the Tigers, as she earned honorable mention All-America honors as well a year ago. Statistically, Vander Kooi was in the Big 12's top 15 in four categories including kills per game (3.36, 13th), aces per game (0.31, t8th), digs per game (2.62, 14th), and points per game (4.16, 10th). Vander Kooi has started in each of the Tigers' 89 matches in her three years on campus. Vander Kooi's real strong suit comes from her game-changing play based on the situation. Against Kansas State a year ago on the road, she helped the Tigers comeback from two games down, capping the fifth game with three-consecutive blocks. At Nebraska, she scored 23 kills adding 22 digs for the squad's only 20-20 of the season. Against Hawaii in the NCAA Tournament semifinal, she was more of a defensive threat, grabbing 20 digs adding six blocks.
The New Crop ...
To replace three Tigers that had a large impact on the team, Mizzou will have five freshman in 2006 season, three of which redshirted in 2005. Lei Wang (Shanghai, China) has positioned herself to take over as Missouri's new setter, replacing first-team All-American Lindsey Hunter (who now is on the USA National Team). Amanda Hantouli (Omaha, Neb.) has been impressive in spring and early fall workouts and will likely see some playing time in the replacement of Lisa Boyd. Megan Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) has been equally impressive and will likely take on an all-around role on the Tiger side. True freshman Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) has shown her strength this fall, having delivered some shattering cross-court shots from the left side and raising some eyebrows with her jump serves. Brittney Herzog (Boonville, Mo.) has also shown a lot to the Tiger coaching staff at the MB position, and just like Wang, Wilson, and Hantouli, will like have a year to refine her skills as she is tentatively slated to redshirt.
Tatum Libre-o ...
As a sophomore she won Big 12 Libero of the Year honors. This year, junior Tatum Ailes will be looking for more as an encore. Leading the conference a year ago with 4.12 digs per game, Ailes has found a knack to be at the right place at the right time. With amazing dives and accurate passes Ailes is not only a physical force for the Tigers, but also an emotional and vocal leader on the floor. In addition, her play in last year's NCAA Tournament played a vital role in the Tigers' run to the Elite Eight as she wiped the floor averaging 5.00 dpg in the four matches. In the regional rounds alone, she scooped 26 against Hawaii and 22 against Tennessee.
Remarking on 2005 ...
We can't go without mentioning the greatest season in Tiger volleyball history (so far). In 2005, Mizzou reached the NCAA Tournament's Sweet Sixteen for the first time in school history, then beating Hawaii to reach its first-ever NCAA Regional Final. Making their sixth-consecutive NCAA Tournament, the Tigers went 7-4 against teams in the top 25, and took down four top-10 teams adding sweeps against then-No. 9 Tennessee and then-No. 9 Wisconsin. The Tigers had the winningest record in school history with a 25-5 mark. Mizzou hosted first-and-second rounds of the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight year, having the largest attended early rounds of the 16 sites. In addition, Mizzou ranked sixth in national attendance, attracting an average of over 2,600 fans a match.
Record Watch ...
MIZZOU CAREER RECORDS
* 402 kills, Jessica Vander Kooi from top 3 all-time at Mizzou
* 249 digs, Tatum Ailes from top 3 all-time at Mizzou
* 51 blocks, Nicole Wilson from second all-time at Mizzou (Shannon Brown, 89-92, 378)
* 127 blocks, Nicole Wilson from all-time leader at Mizzou (Christi Myers, 99-02, 362)
* 443.5 points, Jessica Vander Kooi from top 3 all-time at Mizzou