Volleyball Claims First SEC Victory with 3-1 win over VanderbiltVolleyball Claims First SEC Victory with 3-1 win over Vanderbilt
Volleyball

Volleyball Claims First SEC Victory with 3-1 win over Vanderbilt

Box Score

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou volleyball earned a 3-1 victory in its first conference match against Vanderbilt on Sunday afternoon at Hearnes Center.

KEY PLAYERS

  • Freshman Lydia Stahley (Indianapolis, Ind.) led the offense with 18 kills, posting a new career high.
  • Junior Paige Felder (Parowan, Utah) continued to be strong behind the service line, tallying three aces.
  • Senior libero Ainoah Cruz (Arecibo, P.R.) held up the defense with 19 digs.

SET ONE (Mizzou 25-19, Mizzou leads 1-0)

The two teams started the first set exchanging points before the Tigers drew an early 10-5 lead with the help of a kill from Stahley and an ace from junior Nina Mandovic (Subotica, Serbia). Two kills from junior Felder helped the Tigers keep their lead (15-8).

Vanderbilt tightened MU’s lead to 21-16 with a three–point run consisting of an ace, a kill, and a Mizzou error, however the Tigers closed out the first set with an ace from Felder and a kill from Stahley (25-19).

SET TWO (Vanderbilt 25-14, Tied 1-1)

The Commodores responded early, building a 5-1 lead off a pair of MU errors and a trio of kills from Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt remained in the lead (13-7) despite a kill from senior Grace O’Reilly (Springfield, Mo.) and a block from junior Lauren Larkin (St. George, Utah) and fifth year Kimani Johnson (Southfield, Mich.).

Stahley remained strong offensively for the Tigers, notching two more kills in the remainder of the frame. Sophomore Maca Lobaglio (Buenos Aires, Argentina) had two consecutive kills to force three set points for Vanderbilt (24-14), but the Commodores took the set 25-14.

SET THREE (Mizzou 25-18, Mizzou leads 2-1)

MU began the third set with a five-point run, aided by kills from O’Reilly and Stahley, opening with a 7-3 lead. Vanderbilt responded, tying the set at 12-12, with eight of its nine points coming from kills.

Both teams continued to even the score, as the lead switched eight times before Vanderbilt won two consecutive points, taking a 17-16 advantage. Mizzou answered with a seven-point run sparked by Stahley’s 12th kill, a career high (23-17). A pair of kills from Stahley and Felder sealed the set for the Tigers, 25-18.

SET FOUR (Mizzou 25-18, Mizzou wins 3-1)

Mizzou entered the fourth set drawing four errors from the Commodores and earning an early 4-1 lead. A kill from Smith and an ace from Felder forced an early Vanderbilt timeout.

Vanderbilt tightened the score but kills from Stahley and Lobaglio left Mizzou with a slight edge (13-12). Stahley continued to dominate the front court, tacking on five more kills, advancing the team’s lead to 22-16.

Felder called match point with a strong cross-court kill, followed by a service ace by Dudley to result in a Mizzou win (25-22).

GAME NOTES

  • Mizzou improved to 8-5 on the season.
  • The Tigers record against Vanderbilt is now 1-1. In the previous matchup in the Commodores inaugural season, MU fell in Nashville 3-2 on Nov. 2, 2025.
  • Head coach Dawn Sullivan is now 174-76 all-time and 65-38 at MU.
  • Mizzou led the match in serving aces, tallying seven with five of them accumulating in the first set.
  • The Tigers outhit the Commodores .296 to .230.
  • MU’s defense now has 40+ digs across nine matches this season.

NEXT UP

The Tigers continue SEC play on Friday, as they head to Oxford, Miss., to take on Ole Miss at 6 p.m. CT at the Gillom Sports Center.

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