On paper, Mizzou and Mississippi State felt like an evenly matched showdown that could go five sets and either team could win. On the court, the Tigers proved themselves the better team with a sweep over
the Bulldogs 25-14, 26-24, 25-21.
The Mizzou defense did a phenomenal job limiting the home team’s offense, finishing with nine blocks holding Mississippi State to a .097 hitting percentage. On the offensive end, the Tigers ended the match with a 43-36 advantage in kills. Tyrah Ariail and Caylen Alexander led the offensive attack with 11 kills each.
Here’s how this commanding win played out:
Mizzou opened the match with a definitive win in set one, taking down Mississippi State 25-14. The Tigers never trailed, as they opened the set with a 6-0 run. The Bulldogs pushed it as close as four, but another 4-0 run gave Mizzou a 16-8 lead as they never looked back.
The offensive gap in the first was clear, as the Tigers won the kill battle 13-8 while holding Mississippi State to a negative attacking percentage. Ariail led the Tigers in that first set with five kills while adding three blocks in the opening set.
The second set had a different formula but the same result, as Mizzou won 26-24 in extras to take a 2-0 lead in the match. The Bulldogs flipped the script with a six-point run of their own to open the set. The home team kept Mizzou at bay for most of the set, but the Tigers changed the momentum after head coach Dawn Sullivan successfully challenged a Mississippi State kill into a pancake block. So when it looked like Mizzou was facing a potential 20-14 deficit, that one-point change helped propel the Tigers to an 8-2 run to take a 22-21 lead late. After some back-and-forth action that forced extra points, Mizzou completed the comeback with a kill and a Bulldog attacking error.
The two teams were almost identical in every category, but the Tigers made the difference with one more kill and two less service errors in the set. Mizzou finished the set with 16 kills; five of those came from Alexander alone. Regan Haith was another key offensive contributor with four kills of her own in the set. However the offense was a complete team effort, with six different players recording a kill.
The final set was similar to the first, as both a 4-0 and a 5-0 run for Mizzou helped open up a commanding 14-6 lead. The Bulldogs attempted to come back by pulling it within three, but the Tigers fought off the attempts for the 25-21 set win to take the match.
In the third set both teams overlapped with many similar statistics, but Mizzou separated themselves with a 3-1 advantage in service aces. Two of those came off back-to-back serves from Alexander.
Outside attacker Paige Felder made her prescence known in the third set with four kills to lead all Tigers in the set. She played much of the third set in place of Janet deMarrais, who struggled in the match with an even three kills and three attacking errors.
With this win the Tigers have secured themselves a first round bye in the SEC Tournament and should see a healthy boost in their RPI/KPI to make their NCAA Tournament resume look stronger. With the Florida win, a double bye in the SEC tourney is now impossible. So, Mizzou now has to look ahead to a matchup next Saturday.
But first, the Tigers close the regular season against Alabama at 2 p.m. on Sunday in Tuscaloosa. That match will be available to watch through SEC Network+ on the ESPN app.
