University of Missouri
.png&width=60&height=60&type=webp)
Kansas
Volleyball Draws First Blood in Border Showdown
9/16/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 16, 2009
Box Score |
Notes |
Photo Gallery 
By: Ryan Schmitz; Media Relations Student Assistant
COLUMBIA, Mo. - In the Big 12 Conference opener for both teams, Mizzou volleyball defeated archrival Kansas, 3-1 (19-25, 25-22, 27-25, 26-24), on Wednesday night (Sept. 16) at the Hearnes Center. The win moves Mizzou to 8-3 on the season and 1-0 in Big 12 play while Kansas drops to 7-3 overall and 0-1 in conference play. With the win, the volleyball program scored the first points of the fall in the M&I Bank Border Showdown, which is a year-long battle with Kansas.
Tiger junior Catie Wilson (Omaha, Neb.) led the team with 12 kills at a match-high clip of .500 while teammate Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa) paced Mizzou with a team-best 16 kills. Setter Lei Wang-Francisco (Shanghai, China) anchored the Tiger attack by passing out 55 assists, a season-best for the Tiger senior.
"This was a typical MU-KU match," head coach Wayne Kreklow said. "We had two teams that battled. Both of us are a lot better than last year and we were fortunate enough to pull it out. They're a good volleyball team, so this is a great win for us."
Coming off a road trip to the Michigan/Pepsi Challenge, where the Tigers won three matches, Mizzou opened Big 12 play with a close win over the Jayhawks. The Tigers have yet to lose consecutive matches this season.
Mizzou led the first set 6-5, but Kansas then scored five straight points and pulled ahead for the remainder of the set. Wilson led the Tigers with five kills in the frame and hit .571 on seven attempts. Rosa Medrano (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) and Paola Ampudia (Cali, Colombia) each added three kills in the set.
In the second set, the Tigers broke a 6-6 tie with a five-point run of their own. The Jayhawks came back to within two at 24-22, but Mizzou then converted set point to even the match at one apiece. Junior libero Caitlyn Vann (Munice, Ind.) led the Tigers with eight digs in the set while Ampudia posted five kills to lead all attackers in the second set.
After intermission, Kansas closed a five-point Tiger lead to tie the third set at 23. Following a timeout, Mizzou was unable to convert its first two set points, but capitalized on the third chance to take a 2-1 lead. Ampudia, the reigning Big 12 Rookie of the Week, posted six kills in the set to lead the Tigers.
Kansas jumped out to an early 6-2 lead to open the fourth set, but the Tigers won eight of the next 10 points following a timeout. The set featured 13 ties as neither team was able to sustain momentum. Kansas failed to convert two set points, and the Tigers capitalized to win three straight and close out the match, thanks in large part to a spectacular dig from Vann while the score was knotted at 24.. Mizzou was proud of its tenacity, which paid off as the Tigers earned a hard-fought victory over their biggest rival.
"It was a great match," commented Wilson. "Everyone showed a lot of heart and we all wanted to beat Kansas. I thought our crowd was great tonight and getting that first Big 12 win is a big step in where we want to go as a team."
The Tigers wore pink uniforms for their first-ever `Dig for the Cure' event in conjunction with the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Mizzou Athletics donated $1 for each ticket sold to fund breast cancer research. The volleyball program is also holding an online auction on MUTigers.com that will auction each of the Tigers' 14 match-worn jerseys. All proceeds will go directly to the Komen Foundation.
Mizzou returns to the court Saturday (Sept. 19) with a road match at Oklahoma. The Tigers' next home match is Wednesday, Sept. 23, when they will host UMKC at 6:30 p.m. For the latest information on Mizzou volleyball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com.
