Sept. 19, 2006
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COLUMBIA, Mo.--Before Mizzou's down-two-games comeback a year ago in Manhattan, the Tigers had not defeated Kansas State in their home arena since 1993. On Wednesday, the No. 22 nationally-ranked Missouri (7-4, 1-1) squad will try for their second straight in the Little Apple, trying to so for the first time since 1987. The match with Kansas State (8-3, 0-1) will be aired live on FSN Midwest in Kansas City and Kansas. Although Mizzou swept the season series over the Wildcats a year ago, K-State has won 21 of the last 24 meetings.
No. 22 Missouri at Kansas State
Wednesday, September 20, 7:00 p.m.
TV: FSN Midwest (in Kansas City and Kansas markets only), LIVE ... Ben Boyle, play-by-play; Patti Phillips, color
Radio: 1350 AM, KMAN in Manhattan ... also on 1350kman.com ... Brian Smoller, play-by-play; Lori Martini, color
Live Stats: K-Statesports.com ...
http://www.kstatesports.com/liveStats/liveStats.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=400&KEY=
Coaches: Missouri (7-4) - Wayne Kreklow (Drake '80) ... 3-9 vs. Kansas State
299-38 overall (8th season), 32-9 at Mizzou (2nd season), 141-55 with wife at Mizzou (7th season)
Kansas State (8-3) - Susie Fritz (Florida Atlantic '94) ... 8-2 vs. Missouri ... 120-47 overall and at K-State (6th season)
Series Matchup: Kansas State holds the all-time lead in the series, 35-28 ... Mizzou swept the season series last year for the first time since 1993 ... prior to last season, K-State had won 21 of the last 22 meetings and the last nine straight ... Mizzou owns a 9-8 advantage when playing K-State on a Wednesday
The Kansas State Wildcats host the No. 22 Missouri Tigers in their home conference opener, hoping to regroup after a 3-1 loss to Baylor that knocked them out of the rankings. They are still receiving votes. The Wildcats are 8-3 on the season and 0-1 in the Big 12, but are 4-0 at home. The Wildcats have lost two straight after winning seven matches in a row.
In 11 games, Outside hitter Sandy Werner leads the Wildcats with 3.97 kills per game. Outside hitter Jenny Jantsch is second on the team in both kills and digs, with 3.44 kills per game and 3.10 digs per game. Setter Stacy Spiegelberg leads the team with 13.03 assists per game. Kansas State has a hitting percentage of .251, compared to Missouri's .221 hitting percentage.
The Wildcats have lost two straight to the Tigers, but still hold a 35-28 advantage all time against Missouri, including a 17-10 edge at home.
Head Coach Susie Fritz enters her sixth season at Kansas State, holding a 112-44 record. She led the team to a 21-11 finish last year, finishing fourth in the Big 12. The Wildcats advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and ended the season ranked at No. 24. Fritz has not been successful against the Tigers, only beating Missouri two times out of ten matches.
-- Mustafa Mohammad
Approaching No. 300 ...
Head Coach Wayne Kreklow's record as a collegiate women's volleyball head or co-head coach stands at 299-36, one wins away from win No. 300. Of course, Wayne's previous five years at Mizzou as associate head coach does count towards the 299.
Last Meeting with Kansas State ...
October 26, 2005 in Manhattan, Kan.
Missouri 28 26 30 30 15 (15-2, 9-2)
Kansas State 30 30 23 25 11 (13-9, 6-5)
With a tremendous amount of energy the No. 8 Missouri Tigers beat the No. 24 Kansas State Wildcats on October 26 of last season. The Tigers (16-2, 10-2 Big 12) were able to win their first match in Manhattan since 1993. They also had won a new team-record fifth win over a ranked opponent by that point in the season as well as the fifth all-time win against a ranked opponent on the road. The Tigers, up 12-11 in game five, won the match in with three-consecutive blocks from junior Jessica Vander Kooi.
Sophomore Na Yang led the Tigers in scoring with a then-tied career-high of 21 kills. Playing in her 400th game as a Tiger, senior Shen Danru was phenomenal with 17 kills on .326 hitting (17-3-43), three service aces, 19 digs, and four blocks, tallying her 57th double of her career.
Kansas State was led by Agata Rezende who had 22 kills on .333 hitting, adding 10 blocks as part of a 27 point effort.
-- Brandi Snodgrass
Mizzou's All-Time Down 2-0 to Win Matches
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10/26/05: #24 Kansas State (T) [MU: #8] |
28-30, 26-30, 30-23, 30-25, 15-11 |
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10/1/05: Texas Tech (T) [MU: #7] |
27-30, 28-30, 30-23, 30-21, 15-12 |
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10/15/03: #8 Nebraska (T) |
28-30, 24-30, 30-25, 31-29, 15-9 |
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9/28/02: Colorado (T) |
25-30, 23-30, 30-27, 30-17, 15-11 |
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10/14/92: Kansas (H) |
10-15, 15-17, 15-6, 15-8, 15-5 |
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11/19/88: Iowa State |
4-15, 2-15, 15-12, 15-13, 15-12 |
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11/13/87: Kansas State (T) |
6-15, 8-15, 15-13, 15-5, 16-14 |
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10/18/86: Iowa State (T) |
8-15, 5-15, 15-3, 15-13, 15-13 |
Last Time Out ... The Comeback versus A&M, the First of Its Kind Since 1997 ...
Mizzou had to come from behind, down in games 2-1, against Texas A&M Saturday night, in front of 2,096 Tiger fans, to win their eighth-straight home match and their third consecutive over the Aggies. The win was Mizzou's first since 1997 (at Kansas) in which the Tigers won game one, dropped the next two games and then came back to take the match.
Senior Jessica Vander Kooi (Hinton, Iowa) started and played in her 100th-consecutive match as a Tiger on Saturday and contributed 17 kills, 10 digs, and three aces in the Tiger cause. In her 100 matches, Vander Kooi has scored 10-or-more kills in 95 contests and has contributed 10-or-more digs in 69 occasions, leading to 56 career double-doubles.
Mizzou's All-Time W-L-L-W-W Matches
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9/16/06: Texas A&M (H) [MU: #17] |
30-24, 22-30, 20-30, 30-20, 15-11 |
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11/29/97: Kansas (T) |
15-8, 2-15, 10-15, 15-13, 20-18 |
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11/19/97: Iowa State (H) |
15-10, 7-15, 12-15, 15-7, 15-8 |
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9/30/95: Kansas (H) |
15-12, 13-15, 11-15, 15-11, 15-12 |
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9/10/94: Weber State - Paul Mitchell Classic at Reno, Nev. |
15-7, 6-15, 8-15, 15-12, 15-9 |
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10/18/90: Wichita State (H) |
15-12, 9-15, 13-15, 15-2, 15-11 |
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9/8/88: Ill.-Chicago (H) |
15-7, 11-15, 5-15, 15-11, 15-10 |
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9/17/81: Saint Louis (T) |
15-7, 14-16, 10-15, 15-8, 15-5 |
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10/21/80: Northwest Missouri State (H) |
15-6, 13-15, 4-15, 15-7, 15-10 |
Senior Nicole Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) also played in her 100th match as a Tiger on Saturday, scoring on 12 kills and three blocks on the night. As a group Vander Kooi and Wilson has a winning record of 71-29 (.710) as Tigers.
Despite being outblocked 12-5 and recording a season low in total blocks and in block differential the Tigers still won. Additionally, Mizzou was outhit .287-.186. The last time Mizzou won a match with a below .200 hitting percentage and was outhit was at No. 7 Nebraska in 2003. The Tigers stunned the Huskers in Lincoln despite hitting .121 in that match.
Big 12 Report ...
SATURDAY'S MATCHES: Four of the five matches played Saturday were done in three games. Of course, the one involving Missouri went the full length.
The No. 17-ranked Tigers came back to beat Texas A&M 3-2 in Columbia. The match was the first for Mizzou since 1997 in which the Tigers won the first game, lost the second and third and then came back to win games 4 and 5. The Tigers will go to Kansas State on Wednesday with first serve at 7p.m. (CST)
#5 Texas took down the Kansas Jayhawks in three 30-18 games. Four Texas players put up double figure kill totals and the team posted a .458 hitting percentage. Texas hosts Colorado on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. (CST)
Iowa State beat out Baylor in three close games. Coming from behind twice in game 1, the Cyclones were able to keep up the momentum in games 2 and 3. Iowa State will travel to Nebraska on Wednesday to take on the top ranked Cornhuskers at 7 p.m.
#1 Nebraska dismissed Oklahoma in straight games on Saturday night for their eighth sweep in nine matches. Oklahoma pressed for a win in game three but lost in the end 34-32. Nebraska hosts Iowa State on Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Colorado beat Texas Tech in Lubbock on Saturday night. The match was the Buffaloes fifth straight win and the first time since 2002 they start the season 2-0 in the Big 12. Colorado will next face Texas in Austin on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
Other games on Wednesday include Baylor hosting Texas Tech at 7 p.m. (CST) and Kansas at home against Texas A&M at 7p.m.
-- Meghan Hayden
National Report ...
UPSETS: 6 Florida lost to South Carolina 3-1... 11 Wisconsin lost to UC-Santa Barbra 3-2 in the San Diego Invitational... 16 Ohio lost to San Diego in the San Diego Invitational as well... 24 Arizona lost to Northwestern 3-2 in the Wildcat Invitational...# 24 Kansas State lost to Baylor 3-1 in Big 12 play.
BIG POLL MOVERS: 24 Kansas State and 24 Arizona both dropped out of this week's polls, while New Mexico State and Long Beach State, a Missouri opponent earlier in the year, have come into the polls at the # 24 and 25 spots...LSU made the biggest jump this week, jumping five spots from #18 to #13, while Missouri fell the most spots this week, five, from 17 to 22.
BIG 12 WITH THE MOST: The Big 12 has the honorable distinction of having the most teams either in the polls or currently receiving votes, with seven. # 1 Nebraska, # 5 Texas, and # 22 Missouri are in the Top 25, while Colorado, Baylor, Iowa State and Kansas State are all receiving votes. Texas A&M has also received votes this year, making it a total of eight of the twelve conference teams that have either been ranked or received votes in the Top 25 poll.
AWARDS: South Carolina outside hitter Shonda Cole was named AVCA Player of the Week after leading the Gamecocks to a 2-0 record last week, including an upset of then-No. 6 Florida. Cole averaged an impressive 7.89 kills per game over the two-match span, and hit for a .382 percentage. She also showed off her defensive skills as she averaged 3.89 digs per game. In the upset of Florida, Cole set a school-record for a four-game match with 35 kills, hitting at a lofty .462 clip. She also added 17 digs against the Gators. Against Auburn two days earlier, she pounded out 36 kills, and added a career-high 18 digs. Cole raised her season average to 6.2 kills per game and she's now hitting .365. Cole is the first Gamecock to receive the Sports Imports/AVCA National Player of the Week.
IMPRESSIVE STATS: Last week, setter Emily Nedderman of Texas-Arlington, recorded her third triple double of the year, recording 11 kills, 40 assists, and 10 digs in a three game sweep of Arkansas Little Rock...Maria Taylor of Georgia recorded 30 kills in a five game loss to Auburn on September 17th.
-- Michael Wojtychiw
Tigers Hold On to National Ranking ...
Even with the loss at unranked Colorado on Wednesday, the coaches of the AVCA still think Missouri is a pretty good team. Mizzou held on to a national ranking for the 25th-consecutive poll, ranked as the 22nd team in the country according to the September 18 poll.
The strength of the Big 12 has really started to show as three teams are ranked in the top 25 with four, Kansas State, Iowa State, Baylor and Colorado, receiving votes in the poll, effectively claiming a spot in the nation's top 40.
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.
The 2006 Journal ...
Here are some of the headlines that will stay with us for the rest of the season ...
September 1
Jules' Jumpin' Jives ...
True freshman Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) made quite an impression 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.
September 5
A Week in the Life of Jessica Vander Kooi ... Big 12 Player of the Week ...
Senior Jessica Vander Kooi performed phenomenally in the Tigers' four-match week and as a result was named the Big 12 Player of the Week, earning the honor for the first time in her career.
In defeating UALR, Idaho, Valparaiso, and No. 21 Notre Dame, Vander Kooi scored an average of 6.00 points per game (90 total) on 5.00 kills per game (75 total), 0.87 aces per game (13 total), and 1.33 blocks per game (20 total), adding 4.40 digs per game (66 total) in what was one of the best all-around individual week-long performances in Mizzou history.
Vander Kooi, a 2005 AVCA honorable mention All-American, was named MVP of the Shamrock Invitational, held in South Bend, Ind., with her outstanding play in helping the Tigers to a tournament championship.
In what was the eventual championship match with the No. 21 Irish, Vander Kooi captured the third 20-20 of her career with 30 kills and 25 digs, both career bests in their respective categories. Her 30 kills, the third-highest single-match kill total for a Tiger all-time and the most by a Tiger since 1996, came on a career-high 71 attempts and equaled a .254 hitting percentage. In addition, Vander Kooi scored on eight blocks against the Irish and added a service ace to produce 34.5 points in the match, the second-highest scoring total for a Tiger in school history (35, Yvette Buhlig, October 1, 1992). Statistically, there has been only one other performance in Mizzou history, Yvette Buhlig's 34 kill, 30 dig match against Washington in 1989, that produced more kills and digs than what Vander Kooi posted against the Irish.
Earlier in the week, Vander Kooi nearly became the first Tiger to earn a 20-20 in only three games, scoring 20 kills and adding 19 digs to an awe-inspiring performance against UALR.
Reruns ...
Like Nick-at-Nite we give you the stuff you may have already seen, five, six, seven times, again and again ... ah, remember these good notes? ...
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.
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.
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