University of Missouri
10-0
Southern Illinois
7-4
@MizzouVB Opens Butler Invitational With 3-1 Victory Over Southern Illinois
9/18/2015 4:10:00 PM | Volleyball
Freshman Alyssa Munlyn matches career-high with team-leading 12 kills
INDIANAPOLIS – Mizzou Volleyball began its final tournament of the season on a high note with a 3-1 (25-15, 25-27, 25-18, 25-21) win over Southern Illinois inside Hinkle Fieldhouse. The Tigers improved to 10-0 for the fifth time in program history, joining the 1982, 2000, 2005 and 2013 Mizzou squads.
"We came out firing in the first set, but had to regroup following Southern Illinois' comeback in the second set," head coach Wayne Kreklow said. "Those last two sets I saw a lot of great teamwork and focus from everyone. That really propelled us to our win in today's tournament opener."
Freshman Alyssa Munlyn (Suwanee, Ga.) tallied a team-leading 12 kills on .391 hitting against the Salukis, matching her career-high set on Sept. 11, at Appalachian State.
Junior Emily Thater (Springfield, Mo.) finished with nine kills on .353 hitting and junior Julia Towler (Blue Springs, Mo.) had seven kills on .385 hitting to round out an impressive hitting trio for the Tigers.
Mizzou used a balanced attack in the opening set with five individuals recording two or more kills. Senior Regan Peltier (Nixa, Mo.) paced the Tigers' offense with three kills on .500 hitting. Mizzou pulled away midway through the set after an impressive 9-0 run.
The Tigers were primed to take a two set advantage with a 24-19 second set lead, but the Salukis scored eight of the final nine points to pull off the comeback triumph. Both Mizzou and Southern Illinois struggled with its attack as they had five and six second set errors, respectively.
Mizzou bounced back nicely in the third set behind strong defense at the net and poor Southern Illinois hitting. The Tigers had three total blocks in the set, highlighted by two solo blocks from Munlyn. Southern Illinois produced nine errors to also key the Tigers' third set scoring.
Munlyn continued her successful play in the fourth and final set as she tallied six more kills. Sophomore Courtney Eckenrode (The Woodlands, Texas) capped off her first double-double of the season in the final set, finishing with 24 assists and 12 digs.
Junior Carly Kan (Honolulu, Hawaii) also netted a double-double with 11 kills and 10 digs. Kan now has a team-leading six double-doubles on the season for Mizzou.
UP NEXT
Mizzou continues action tonight inside Hinkle Fieldhouse against Butler at 5 p.m. CT. The Tigers wrap up their Butler Invitational schedule Saturday vs. Youngstown State at 1 p.m. CT.
Fans can follow live stats of each match this weekend through Butler Athletics (www.ButlerSports.com) and on Twitter (@MizzouVB).
Visit MUTigers.com for the latest information on all things Mizzou Volleyball. You can also find the Tigers on social media by liking us on Facebook (Missouri Volleyball) and following us on Twitter and Instagram (@MizzouVB).
