Sept. 12, 2006
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COLUMBIA, Mo.--The road trip continues for the No. 17 Missouri volleyball team. The Tigers, 6-3, will open Big 12 play Wednesday with an 8 p.m. (CT) tilt versus the Buffaloes of Colorado (4-3) in Boulder. After dropping two matches to two top-five teams at the Texas Invitational last weekend, the Tigers are looking the rebound and start the conference season anew. While Mizzou has been successful in the last two trips to Boulder, the Buffaloes are on a three-match winning streak and have solid veteran squad.
No. 17 Missouri at Colorado
Wednesday, September 10, 7 p.m. (MT)
Webcast: CUBuffs.com, Stampede Live Video (subscription required, minimum $9.95) ...
https://www.nmnathletics.com/liveEvents/liveEvents.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=600&KEY=
Live Stats: CUBuffs.com ... https://www.nmnathletics.com/liveStats/liveStats.dbml
Coaches: Missouri (6-3) - Wayne Kreklow (Drake '80) ... 8-4 vs. Colorado
298-37 overall (8th season), 31-8 at Mizzou (2nd season), 140-54 with wife at Mizzou (7th season)
Colorado (4-3) - Pi'I Aiu (Colorado, '89) ... 8-8 vs. Missouri ... 167-107 overall and at Colorado (9th season)
Series Matchup: Colorado leads all-time series, 30-9 ... in Boulder, Colorado leads 16-3, Mizzou has won last two meetings in Boulder
Scouting Colorado ...
After opening the season off with a 3-0 victory over Denver, the Colorado Buffaloes suffered three straight losses, all to top-10 teams Hawaii, UCLA, and Florida. Since then, the Buffs have won three straight to get to a record of 4-3 on the season.
In seven matches, outside hitter Amber Sutherland leads the team with 3.86 kills per game and is second on the team in digs per game with 3.86. Outside hitter Mallori Gibson is close behind with 3.43 kills per game. Setter Ashley Nu'u, who was an honorable mention All-Big 12 pick last year, leads the team with 11.75 assists per game.
As a team, Colorado has a hitting percentage of .235 on the season, and is on a four game winning streak at home. Missouri beat the Buffs last year at Colorado 3-0 before losing at home to them in a close 3-2 match. The Buffs have not played more than three games in all of their matches this season so far. Colorado has not beaten a ranked team since they beat Missouri on October 29 of last year.
The Buffs finished 15-13 last season, placing fifth in the Big 12 with a 10-10 record. Colorado loses AVCA All-America honorable mention Allie Griffin, who led the team in kills with 4.58 per game.
Head Coach Pi'i Aiu enters his tenth season at Colorado and has a record of 167-107.
-- Mustafa Mohammad
Big 12 Report ...
WEDNESDAY IN THE LEAGUE: Five matches featuring ten Big 12 teams kick off conference play tonight. Four of the matches will be in progress when the Tigers and Buffs get under way at 8 p.m. (CDT).
Oklahoma travels to College Station to take on Texas A&M at 6:30 p.m.. The Aggies received 73 votes in the latest CSTV/AVCA Coaches Poll. Also at 6:30 p.m., ESPNU will cover the Texas Tech-Texas match-up in Austin. The Longhorns jumped two spots to fifth after sweeping No. 8 Santa Clara and forcing five games with No. 2 Penn State.
In another televised match, Kansas travels to undefeated and top-ranked Nebraska at 7 p.m. CSTV will have the broadcast. The Jayhawks received five votes in Monday's poll. Also at 7 p.m., Baylor hosts the Wildcats of No. 24 Kansas St.
Iowa State has the night off.
CONFERENCE ROUND-UP: The Big 12 league office announced Nebraska's Sarah Pavan as the conference's Volleyball Player of the Week for Sept. 4-10. The 6-5 junior earned the reward for the fourth time in her career. She was the conference's Player of the Year in 2005.
Pavan led the undefeated Cornhuskers to three victories during the week, compiling 6.70 points, 5.90 kills (on a .409 hitting percentage) and 2.30 digs a game. The Ontario-native recorded 18 kills each in matches against No. 20 Louisville on Friday and No. 25 Cal-Poly on Saturday.
At 7-0 Nebraska is the lone remaining undefeated Big 12 team. Baylor (11-1) and Texas A&M (7-1) are second and third in the standings. With a record of 6-3, the Tigers are currently in 10th.
A glance of the conference statistics as of Sept. 10, finds Tiger junior Tatum Ailes second on the Big 12's digs per game list. Nebraska's Dani Busboom (5.53) tops the chart to Ailes 5.45 digs.
-- McClain Thompson
National Report ...
UPSETS: This past weekend, No. 16 Brigham Young was swept by Kansas in three games in the Jayhawk Invitational ... No. 21 Arizona lost to Rice in five games at Arizona's Wildcat Classic ... No. 23 Notre Dame was swept by Kansas State in 3 games and lost to Northern Iowa three games to one in the UNI Invitational ...Cal Poly lost to Minnesota 3-1.
BIG POLL MOVERS: The only big poll movers were No. 20 Louisville and No. 21 Notre Dame dropping out of the polls, while Michigan and Michigan entered the polls at 22nd and tied for 24th, respectively.
TIGER OPS IN TOP 25: The Big 12 is represented by four teams in the national polls: # 1 Nebraska, # 5 Texas, # 17 Missouri, and Kansas State, which is tied for 24th. Tiger non conference opponents in the Top 25 are: # 2 Penn State, who swept the Tigers, and # 7 Santa Clara, who defeated the Tigers three games to one. Two opponents, Long State Beach, which swept the Tigers in three games and Notre Dame, whom the Tigers beat in a grueling five game battle, are both receiving votes in the most recent poll.
AWARDS: Penn State freshman setter Alisha Glass was named AVCA Player of The Week after leading the Nittany Lions to two victories in Austin Texas: against Missouri, where she recorded a career high 44 assists and against Texas, where she dismantled her assist record by handing out 63 assists in the five game win over the Longhorns.
FAN WATCH: Missouri has participated in two matches, which have had the 28th and 29th highest attendance numbers of the year: against Long Beach State (2,009 fans), and the Tigers' home opener, which drew 1,855 fans to the Hearnes Center.
-- Michael Wojtychiw
Hitting the Century Mark ...
On Saturday, seniors Jessica Vander Kooi and Nicole Wilson will likely play in their 100th match as Tigers. Vander Kooi has started in each of the Tigers 98 matches to this point starting with the first match of her freshman year against Montana State. So far in 98 contests, Vander Kooi has scored 10-or-more kills in 93 matches adding at least 10 digs in 67 matches and is credited with 54 career double doubles.
Approaching No. 300 ...
Head Coach Wayne Kreklow's record as a collegiate women's volleyball head or co-head coach stands at 298-35, two wins away from win No. 300. Of course, the previous five years at Mizzou as associate head coach does count towards the 298.
The Odd Factors ... Just SID Banter, Nothing too Exciting
THE NEXT BIG JINX: Here's the kicker, Mizzou has an 11-match road winning streak when playing non-ranked Big 12 opponents. Unbelievably, this streak dates back to 2003 as the Buffaloes took down Mizzou in five games in November of that year. Amazingly enough Mizzou is 47-71 all-time in the category and only 2-8 against Colorado when facing them on the road when they are not ranked.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN LOW: The Tigers are 10-31 all-time against teams from the state of Colorado. Only three of those matches came from a team other than the U. of Colorado. The Tigers have faced Northern Colorado twice (1-1) and lost to Colorado State in 1991.
In Colorado, Mizzou is 3-16 all-time having played only the Buffaloes while in the state. In fact, Boulder is the third-worst location in terms of winning percentage for the Tiger squad all-time, behind only Minneapolis, Minn. (0-6), and Fayetteville, Ark. (1-6).
SOME GOOD TEAMS HERE: Only three times in the last 18 meetings (nine years) between Missouri and Colorado has neither team been ranked. Only once were both teams ranked, as then-No. 18 Colorado took then-No. 24 Missouri in Boulder in November 2000. When either teams are ranked, the ranked team is 17-4. Colorado upset Mizzou's 28-match winning streak against non-ranked opponents by winning a five-gamer in Columbia in October of last year.
Kreklows to be inducted in Columbia College Athletic Hall of Fame ...
Columbia College announced that Tiger coaches Susan and Wayne Kreklow will be inducted into the school's Athletic Hall of Fame on October 6.
Susan and Wayne Kreklow began their coaching careers at Columbia College at different times, but they shared the enjoyment of leading the college's Cougar Volleyball team to its first national championship in 1998, with a repeat performance in 1999. Susan Kreklow joined Columbia College in 1990 as volleyball coach. During the next four seasons, she led the Cougars to four straight conference championships and an overall record of 189-57 (.768). Wayne Kreklow joined her in 1994 as co-head coach of the women's volleyball team and head coach of the newly created men's volleyball team. The following six seasons "Team Kreklow" saw unmatched success at Columbia College with six more conference championships, back-to-back undefeated seasons in 1998 and 1999, two NAIA National Championships and an overall record of 267-29 (.902). They were six-time Conference Coaches of the Year, five-time Region Coaches of the Year and two-time NAIA Coaches of the Year. The Kreklows coached nine NAIA All-Americans, two NAIA All-America Scholar-Athletes, five NAIA Players of the Week and one NAIA Player of the Year.
Time Travelers ...
In a three-week period, the Missouri squad, natives of the Central time zone will have traveled to each time zone in the contiguous United States. Visiting Long Beach (Pacific), Notre Dame (Eastern, for now), and now Colorado (Mountain), the Tigers have had to bout some serious jet lag.
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.
Tigers Picked Third in Big 12 Preseason Poll ...
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.
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 now started in each of the Tigers' 96 matches in her four 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.