University of Missouri
Arkansas State
No. 20 Tigers Endure Magnolia Classic, Win Two Saturday
8/25/2007 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Aug. 25, 2007
Jacksonville State box | Arkansas State box
OXFORD, Miss.— The Missouri volleyball team endured an exhausting 24-hour period, playing three matches that culminated with a doubleheader Saturday in closing the team's play at the Magnolia Classic in Oxford, Miss. The Tigers (2-1) defeated Jacksonville State (1-1) in a marathon five-gamer before sweeping Arkansas State (0-3) in the final match of the day. Na Yang led Mizzou in kills in both matches, scoring 20 kills against Jacksonville State and 18 kills against Arkansas State.
“I think, this overall, was a good weekend for us,” said Head Coach Wayne Kreklow. “Sure, we were disappointed with the Ole Miss loss (last night), but for this early-tournament situation, it was just good for us to get out on the court and see what we have. We showed weak areas, but we also shoed areas where we are very good at. It was a productive weekend, and is was good for our young players to be put in this type of situation.”
No. 20 Missouri 3, Arkansas State 0
The Tigers topped Arkansas State 32-30, 30-20, and 30-13. Yang has 18 kills and three blocks in the match. Julianna Klein added 12 kills and six digs. Megan Wilson scored a career high with 10 kills on a .529 hitting percentage. Freshman Catie Wilson led Mizzou with five blocks, adding four kills.
Lei Wang had 42 assists to go with four kills, six digs, and a block. Wang led the Tiger offense to a season-high .310 hitting percentage.
Lindsay Smith also made her first career start in the match.
No. 20 Missouri 3, Jacksonville State 2
Mizzou won today's first match over Jacksonville State, 30-16, 28-30, 27-30, 30-23, 15-12.
Na Yang led the Tigers (1-1) with 20 kills and four blocks. Freshman Weiwen Wang scored 19 kills, adding eight blocks. Sophomore Julianna Klein continued her hot weekend in scoring 16 kills, adding three blocks.
Mizzou was impressive at the net, grabbing 15 team blocks. Along with Weiwen Wang's eight, Megan Wilson tallied five in the block-assist category.
Tatum Ailes notched 25 digs in the match.
Luiza Jarocka (Warsaw, Poland) grabbed her first start as a Tiger, playing as a defensive specialist and passer. Lindsay Smith and Catie Wilson also saw their first playing time as Tigers.
The Tigers squandered a seven-point lead in game two, only to lose on a 14-5 run by the Gamecocks (1-1). Abbey Breit, the 2006 OVC Female Athlete of the Year, led JSU with 23 kills to become the school's all-time leader in kills.
Arkansas State Game-by-Game
The Tigers were down by as much as six in game one, but fought back with a 16-4 run to go up by what was thought to be a solid 28-25 lead. But, after a Tiger unforced error, quirky serving by the Indians, including an ace that cut the net and landed within the 10-foot line, put the score tied at 28-all. Na Yang fired back with three kills in the next five points to give Mizzou a 31-30 advantage. A improvised kill by Lei Wang off a Lindsay Smith bump set gave Mizzou the game one win, 32-30. Within a serving run by Klein, starting at 25-23 in favor of ASU, Klein served an ace and two double blocks by Catie Wilson and Na Yang helped give the Tigers the leg up. In the amazing statistic category, Tatum Ailes had 11 digs in the first frame.
A Catie Wilson-Megan Wilson double block forced ASU to a timeout that culminated an 8-2 run to take an early 11-6 lead. The Tigers scored four-more consecutive points to make seven total and forced ASU to take its final timeout. Mizzou didn't look back as a six-point serve run by Klein gave Mizzou a 29-16 lead. A 4-0 Indian run gave Mizzou a last scare.
Mizzou made quick work of Arkansas State in the last frame, scoring a 15-4 run to make the score 21-9. To that point Mizzou had hit .560 (15 kills, 1 error, 26 attempts). The Tigers went on to hit .375 in the frame.
Jacksonville State Game-by-Game
In game one, Weiwen Wang scored on four kills, four blocks and ace for the Tigers. Mizzou jumped to a 9-1 lead after serving runs by Lei Wang and Klein. Within the first 10 points of the game, Weiwen Wang had already amassed two kills and two blocks. Another serving run by Lei Wang gave Mizzou a 17-7 lead after the four-point streak. The Tigers remained in control, scoring eight of the final 11 points to take the game 30-16. Mizzou held the Gamecocks to a -.029 hitting percentage.
In game two, Mizzou had a 23-16 lead, but a 5-1 Gamecock run pulled JSU within three at 25-21. It appeared one again stabilized the game, scoring on three of the next four to make the score 27-22 after a Yang kill and Megan Wilson-Weiwen Wang double-block. But, Jacksonville State used an 8-1 run to close the game. Weiwen Wang scored six kills in the frame.
Although the Tigers scored 20 kills on a .333 hitting percentage in the third set, Jacksonville State was more efficiently offensively with a .477 hitting strike. JSU set the tone early in the frame with a 18-15 lead that force a Mizzou timeout. The teams would trade scores back-and-forth, but Mizzou never gained enough momentum to recapture their last lead that they enjoyed at 2-1.
In the fourth set, the Tigers hit .255 with Na Yang scoring six kills in the frame. Mizzou gained control of the match thanks to a 7-0 Megan Wilson serving run. An ace by Wilson to make the score 13-5 gave Mizzou firm control. After the run, the teams stayed consistently even. Although the game came within five at 22-17, Mizzou's Klein found two kills in a 4-0 mini-run to once again pull the Tigers away.
In the decider, Na Yang got her 20th kill of the match on the clincher, but it didn't come easy. The Tigers were up 10-6 thanks to two Lei Wang solo blocks and kill. JSU scored on three of the next four to tie at 12-all. Mizzou took the benefit of two-consecutive Gamecock unforced errors and Yang's kill to take the victory.
Mizzou will next host the Tiger Invitational next weekend, starting Friday with a 6:30 p.m., meeting with Notre Dame. Due to Florida A&M dropping from the tournament, the tournament schedule has changed. Complete details will be released tomorrow.
