Oct. 10, 2006
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COLUMBIA, Mo.--It was October 11, 2003, when the Mizzou football team defeated then-No. 10 Nebraska, 41-24 in the Tigers first victory over the Huskers in 24 tries. On Wednesday, October 11, 2006, the No. 15 Tiger volleyball team (13-4, 7-1) looks for the same type of magic when playing No. 1 Nebraska (15-0, 7-0) on "Can the Huskers" Night II in the Hearnes Center, starting at 6:30. The winner of the match will be the Big 12's leader. Fans can enter the match with two-canned food items that benefit the Central Missouri Food Bank, plus the first 400 students get free pizza.
No. 1 Nebraska at No. 15 Missouri
Wednesday, October 11, 6:30 p.m.,
Columbia, Mo., Hearnes Center
TV: Mizzou Sports Network, LIVE (KZOU in Columbia, MetroSports in Kansas City, FSN Midwest [except in Indiana])
Beau Baehman, play-by-play; Craig Sherman, color; Steve Kurtenbach, producer
Webcast: Mizzou All-Access, subscription required ...
http://all-access.cstv.com/cstv/player/player.html?code=miss
Live Stats: MUTigers.com ...
Coaches:
Missouri (13-4) - Wayne Kreklow (Drake '80) ... 1-11 vs. Nebraska ...
305-38 overall (8th season), 38-9 at Mizzou (2nd season), 147-55 with wife at Mizzou (7th season)
Nebraska (15-0) - John Cook (San Diego, '79) ... 11-1 vs. Missouri ...
363-86 overall (7th season), 202-13 at Nebraska (7th season)
Series Matchup: Nebraska leads the all-time series, 61-3 ... Mizzou's last win over the Huskers was in 2003 in Lincoln, in that match Mizzou came back from two games down to win ... Mizzou has lost the last 21 meetings in Columbia, dating back to 1982
Other Facts: Mizzou holds a 9-4 all-time advantage and a three-match winning streak on October 11th. Just so you know, the Mizzou football team defeated then-No. 10 Nebraska 41-24 in breaking the team's 24-game losing streak to the Huskers on October 11, 2003.
The No. 1 nationally-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers are looking to solidify their hold on first place in the Big 12 Conference, taking on the No. 15 Missouri Tigers. The Huskers (15-0, 7-0) are in sole possession of first place, but must beat the Tigers (13-4, 7-1) to stay there.
Junior outside hitter Sarah Pavan leads the Cornhuskers as well as the Big 12 with 5.18 kills per game in seven Big 12 games so far. Pavan is also averaging 1.09 blocks per game. Sophomore outside hitter Jordan Larson is second on the team with 4.41 kills per game, good for fifth in the Big 12, and is second on the team with 3.82 digs per game. She also is second in the conference with .50 service aces per game. Larson was named the Big 12 Conference Volleyball Player of the Week for last week's performances against Kansas State and Texas A&M.
Freshman middle blocker Kori Cooper leads the Big 12 in hitting percentage, with an average of .431 in conference games. Junior middle blocker Tracy Stalls has a hitting percentage of .376, fourth in the conference, and is ninth in the conference with 1.23 blocks per game. Freshman setter Rachel Holloway leads the team with 12.75 assists per game, and is third in the Big 12 in the category.
The Huskers lead almost every category in the Big 12 Conference. Nebraska leads the conference in hitting percentage with .266, opponent hitting percentage with .126, assists with 16.23, kills with 17.18, service aces with 1.73, and digs with 18.27. The Huskers are fourth in the only category they don't lead in, blocks, with 2.93 per game.
The Tigers are fighting history, as Nebraska has won 21 straight matches in Columbia, and have not lost there since 1982. In 65 matches, Nebraska has dominated, holding a record of 61-3-1. In matches played in Columbia, the Huskers are 23-1, with Missouri's lone win coming in a 3-2 victory in 1982 when Nebraska was ranked No. 19. Missouri has however, defeated Nebraska in 2003 in Lincoln after trailing by two games. The Tigers ended up winning 3-2 against the Huskers, who were ranked No. 8 at the time.
Nebraska Head Coach John Cook has kept Nebraska as one of the elite teams in the nation. Cook is in his seventh year with the Huskers and has led them to a 202-13 record. Nebraska has qualified for the NCAA Tournament 24 straight times. Cook is 11-1 against Missouri.
The Huskers have four starters returning from last year's 33-2 team that finished first in the Big 12 with a 19-1 record. The Huskers finished the season ranked No. 2 in the nation after being an NCAA National Finalist, falling to Washington 3-0 in the NCAA Finals.
-- Mustafa Mohammad
The Great October 11th ...
Just like we said in the opener, Mizzou is looking for more magic on the October 11 date. The Mizzou football team had a historic win on that date back in 2003, defeating the then-No. 10 Huskers, 41-24 in what was the Tigers first win over Nebraska in 24 years.
And extra piece of miscellany, Mizzou volleyball is 9-4 all-time and has a two-match winning streak on the date, as the Kreklows are 2-0 as coaches on the date.
"Can the Huskers" Night II ...
The last "Can the Huskers" Night was HEAVILY successful. The Mizzou-record 7,298 fans that attended last year's match donated over 5,000 pounds of food to the Central Missouri Food Bank.
The Productive Lei Wang (pronounced Lay Wong) ...
Redshirt freshman setter Lei Wang (Shanghai, China) has shown big improvement in the last five matches, averaging 13.62 assists per game and leading Mizzou to a .287-team hitting percentage over the stretch compared to the first 12 matches of the season where Wang was credited with only 11.42 assists per game and Mizzou was hitting at a .225 clip.
|
|
First |
Last |
|
|
12 Matches |
5 Matches |
|
|
| |
|
assists per game |
11.42 |
13.62 |
|
|
|
|
|
Team Hit Pct. |
.225 |
.287 |
|
Team Kills Per Game |
15.02 |
17.06 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
hitting percentage |
.293 |
.432 |
Looking Back at the Past Week ...
* The Mizzou volleyball squad won its sixth- and seventh-consecutive matches last week, sweeping Kansas on Wednesday and Iowa State on Saturday. Mizzou has now won 11-straight games within matches, having swept its last three opponents. The Tigers has defeated Kansas seven-straight times and Iowa State 19-straight times.
* The Tigers dispatched Kansas quickly, winning in a 30-19, 30-26, 30-18 fashion. The team hit a conference-season high .421 as Nicole Wilson led the team with 13 kills on .579 hitting.
* Iowa State fell victim to Mizzou in the Tigers 30-26, 34-32, 30-22 win. Freshman Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) had a very good homecoming, leading all scorers with 15 kills on .345 hitting.
* Senior MB Nicole Wilson (Lincoln, Neb.) averaged 5.92 points per game during the past week in sweeps over Kansas and Iowa State, scoring on 1.67 blocks per game, 4.50 kills per game on a .471 hitting percentage and 0.50 service aces per game. Against Kansas, Wilson scored 13 kills on 19 attempts, committing only two errors for a .579 hitting percentage. She also added three blocks and three digs in performance against the Jayhawks. At Iowa State, she scored 14 kills on 32 attempts, committing only one error for a .406 hitting percentage, adding seven blocks and three service aces.
Last Year's Meetings With the Huskers ...
Both meetings between the Huskers and Tigers in 2005 were historic. Although Mizzou lost both matchup, both had will have lasting thought in many of the squad's players.
The match in Columbia on October 5 was historic because of the sheer fan-base Mizzou had drawn to the match. Both teams entered the contest in the national top-10 and both were undefeated. 7,298 fans attended that match which went to the Huskers in four games, 30-26, 22-30, 30-23, 30-27. Sarah Pavan led Nebraska with 18 kills, adding 11 digs. Mizzou's Na Yang had a team-high 18 kills. Tiger Nicole Wilson had seven blocks.
The match at Nebraska on November 13 was a nail biter. Mizzou came out firing, winning games one and two by scores of 30-28 and 30-27. In the first two games alone Mizzou's Jessica Vander Kooi scored 15 kills and 11 digs as part of her 20-20 night in which she scored 23 kills, adding 22 digs in total on the evening. Nebraska was down 4-0 in game three before the top-ranked team awoke and took game three 30-21. Mizzou was up in game four 6-1, but Nebraska had an answer again and would take the game 30-24. In game five, Nebraska totally dominated, winning 15-3, allowing Mizzou only two kills on a -.286 hitting percentage.
A Zero on the Ones ...
I used this note last year, and I thought it was clever enough to bring it back. Yeah, me! Remember in the game Yahtzee when you put a "zero on the ones" because you can't make a adequate score based on the dice already rolled and losing the ones aren't that big of a problem? Well, most teams can say that about No. 1 teams, just put a zero on the ones, in the win column.
Mizzou changed history when defeating then-No. 5 Texas earlier this season, claiming victory over a top-five time for the first time ever. The Tigers are 0-8 all-time against the nation's top-ranked teams. But, to be fair, seven times the opponent has been Nebraska, the only other time, the opponent was Penn State.
When the Hearnes is a Rockin' ...
In the Tigers' 11-match home winning streak - that includes two sweeps over Texas (the Longhorns were in the national top 10 in both meetings), two wins each over Texas A&M and Baylor, and the first-and-second rounds of the 2005 NCAA Tournament - the Tigers have won 33 of 38 games and are averaging a game victory of 30-24 in the streak. The 11-match streak ranks as the 11th-longest home winning streak in the nation.
Since the Kreklows have inhabited the Hearnes Center, the couple is 74-17 in home matches and an amazing 10-13 over ranked teams at home.
Mizzou is currently ranked eighth in the nation in average attendance.
NCAA Home-Winning Streaks
|
Nebraska |
42 |
|
Ohio |
39 |
|
Florida |
25 |
|
Washington |
22 |
|
Duke |
22 |
|
Grambling State |
17 |
|
New Mexico State |
16 |
|
Army |
14 |
|
California |
13 |
|
Oral Roberts |
12 |
|
Missouri |
11 |
|
Houston |
11 |
A Mid-Season Critical Stretch for the Big 12 Leaders ...
Seeing the picture of the next Big 12 Champion could be quite a bit more clear after the next three weeks as the top teams in the Big 12, Nebraska, Mizzou, and Oklahoma all square off against one another in what will be a interesting three weeks ahead. Although the Huskers and Tigers are 1-2 currently in the Big 12, they are tied for the toughest strength of schedule over the next five matches (mainly because the two border foes face each other twice within a two week period).
The next five matches for both Nebraska and Missouri include three road contests. Nebraska will visit Texas A&M Saturday before trekking to Columbia for the first Husker-Tiger matchup. Missouri has a similar tough road test at Iowa State before the possible 1-2 battle. After playing Mizzou, Nebraska hosts a tough Colorado team as Mizzou will have to travel to face a tough Oklahoma team. Then, Nebraska goes to Texas and Mizzou hosts Kansas State before Missouri travels to Lincoln for the rematch just 14 days after hosting the Cornhuskers.
Next Five Matches
Nebraska: @ Texas A&M, @ Missouri, Colorado, @ Texas, Missouri
Missouri: @ Iowa State, Nebraska, @ Oklahoma, Kansas State, @ Nebraska
Big 12 Strength of Schedule for Next Five Matches
|
1 |
Nebraska |
.667 |
|
|
Missouri |
.667 |
|
3 |
Texas Tech |
.548 |
|
4 |
Kansas State |
.545 |
|
5 |
Texas A&M |
.531 |
|
6 |
Texas |
.516 |
|
7 |
Iowa State |
.469 |
|
8 |
Baylor |
.438 |
|
9 |
Kansas |
.433 |
|
10 |
Colorado |
.419 |
|
11 |
Oklahoma |
.412 |
Big 12 Report
Ducking the recent trend, three of the five Big 12 matches from last weekend were won by road teams. Ironically, all four on Saturday's matches were sweeps.
SWEEPINGLY: #1 Nebraska kept rolling along, as they swept Texas A&M 30-25, 30-24, and 30-20 for their fifteenth consecutive win. It is the team's 12th sweep of the season, and seventh straight Big 12 win. Sarah Pavan led the Huskers with 17 kills, while Jordan Larson (Big 12 Player of the Week) recorded her seventh straight double double, with 11 kills and a team high 15 digs. The seventh straight double double is the first time a Husker has achieved the feat since 2003. Nebraska travels to # 15 Missouri, while the Aggies travel to Baylor.
BUFF ATTACK: Colorado handed Kansas State its eighth straight overall and seventh straight Big 12 loss with a three game sweep of the Wildcats in Manhattan, Kansas. Kansas State has not won a match since September 9th, while Colorado won its first match on Kansas State's home floor since 1999. Colorado, which has won three of its last four, was led by Amber Sutherland's 18 kills and Kristen Karlik's 17 digs. Colorado next hosts Iowa State, while Kansas State travels to Lawrence, Kansas for the 93rd meeting of the Sunflower Showdown against the University of Kansas.
I-35 BATTLE: #10 Texas squeaked by in state rival Baylor on Saturday in five games, 27-30, 30-26, 30-26, 31-33, and 15-10. Freshman Ashley Engle led the Longhorns with 26 kills, while Alyson Jennings added 19 digs. Engle recorded her fourth straight double-double as she added 16 kills as well. Both setters, Baylor's Taylor Barnes, and Texas' Michelle Moriarty, added impressive assist numbers, as they recorded 63 and 75 kills, respectively. Texas has the week off.
SOONER OR LATER: # 24 Oklahoma recorded it's fifth straight victory and 12th sweep of the season when it swept Kansas 30-21, 30-24, 32-30. The victory over the Jayhawks was Head coach Santiago Restrepo's first victory over Kansas. Bridget Laplante and Joanna Schmitt led the Sooners with 15 and 14 kills, respectively, and Anna Monsen led Oklahoma with 17 digs. Oklahoma next travels to Texas Tech to take on the Red Raiders in Lubbock, Texas.
BIG-MO: #15 Missouri traveled to Ames, Iowa to take on the Cyclones of Iowa State and came away with a three game sweep, 30-26, 34-32, 30-22. The win was Missouri's seventh straight overall and in conference play. Freshman Julianna Klein led the Tigers with 15 kills, while Nicole Wilson and Nay Yang added 15 and 14. The Tigers next face the Cornhuskers of Nebraska, when they try to break last season's all time record for attendance of 7,98 with "Can the H
-- Michael Wojtychiw
National Report
UPSETS Two upsets happened this past week and both involved unranked teams defeating teams in the top 12... then - #10 Louisiana State lost to Alabama in Tuscaloosa 3-1...then - #12 Santa Clara was swept by Loyola Marymount at home, 3-0
POLL MOVERS: 11 Hawaii and 12 Utah made the biggest jumps in the polls each moving up four spots, from 15th and 16th, respectively. #17 Santa Clara however, made the biggest fall, dropping five spots, from 12 to 17. Pepperdine dropped out of the polls, while New Mexico State New Mexico State was last ranked for two weeks in September, when they reached their peak with a # 22 ranking. Outside of the top four teams ranked, New Mexico State brings the best record, at 19-1 into the week as they host Northern Arizona and face their stiffest challenge when they host # 12 Hawaii.
AWARDS: Jamie Houston, a sophomore left-side hitter from then-fifteenth-ranked University of Hawaii, has been named the Sports Imports/AVCA Division I National Player of the Week. Houston led her team to two home wins this past week over Utah State and Nevada. Houston, in a sweep of the Utah State Bulldogs, had 23 kills, 3 blocks and 7 digs; her hitting percentage was .386 for the match. Later in the week in a sweep over the Wolf Pack, she put away another 18 kills and added 10 digs for her fifth double-double of the season, while hitting .417. For the week, Houston averaged 6.83 kills per game and a steady 2.83 digs per game; she hit an even .400 and averaged 7.50 points per game. On the seas