The Mizzou volleyball team has faced a true gauntlet to start SEC play, feeling that challenge in a road loss to Florida 23-25, 25-22, 23-25, 26-28.
Mizzou kept it close in every set start to finish, but could not match the Florida offense. The Tigers struggled with reception as a whole, losing the kills battle 57-71 and the aces battle 4-9. As the road team Mizzou kept it close, but couldn’t pull it out when it mattered most at the end of the set.
Caylen Alexander played her best statistical game as a Tiger, setting a season-high with 24 kills on only four assists and a .333 hitting percentage. She finished with a double-double thanks to 15 digs on the defensive end while adding two blocks. Janet deMarrais was the other Tiger with double-digit kills at 11, recording a double-double in her own right with 10 digs. But deMarrais was too high error, recording four attacking errors for a .184 hitting percentage.
It was another strong game for Maya Sands, flying all over for 19 digs while adding two service aces. Marina Crownover was the final Tiger with a double-double at 40 assists and 14 digs.
As for the actual game, here’s how it all went down:
Mizzou lost the first set 23-25 that was filled with plenty of offensive firepower. The Tigers forced eight ties but could never take the lead as the Gators led from the jump thanks to a 3-0 run to start the match. The two teams were extremely even all set, as Florida won the kill battle 20-14 but it cost them in terms of attacking errors (6-0). The other difference was Florida’s two service aces, including one that put them up 23-20 and forced a Tiger timeout. The Tigers scored another three points including an overturned play on a big challenge from head coach Dawn Sullivan, but two more Gator kills gave them the 1-0 lead.
Mizzou played clean volleyball with no errors and hitting over .300, and that started with six kills from Alexander. She only had nine attacking attempts, making for an absurd .667 hitting percentage.
The Tigers bounced back, winning the second set 25-22. Mizzou opened the set with a 13-4 lead thanks to a healthy combination of aces, kills and Gator errors. Florida bounced back as the set continued, cutting the deficit to 22-21 to force a Sullivan timeout. Luckily Mizzou ended on a 3-1 win thanks to a pair of bad sets from Florida.
The Gators were the sloppier team in the second set; looking at combined service/attacking errors, Florida had 7 while Mizzou had 3. This time it was middle blocker Tyrah Ariail’s time to shine, finishing the second set with four kills and an ace.
The third set looked identical to the first as Mizzou lost 23-25. The set was highly competitive with 16 ties and five lead changes. Florida led 23-22 when it was initially ruled that the Gator attack was out of bounds. That play was overturned with a Mizzou touch, giving the Gators a two-point advantage heading into set point. This was too much for the Tigers to overcome, as a Florida kill gave them a 2-1 set advantage.
Florida’s advantage once again was its potent offense, winning the kill battle 18-13. As a whole the Mizzou offense was lower in error, but not as potent when it came to racking up kills. It was another strong set for Alexander as she finished with seven kills, an ace and a block.
Florida secured the win by winning the fourth set in extra points 28-26. The Gators held a narrow lead all set, stretching it to 22-19 late in the set. Mizzou scored four points in a row to take the lead thanks to a pair of kills, a block and a Florida error. The Gators had back-to-back kills with a chance to close it out, but an attacking error forced us into extra points. The teams traded points up to 26 before Florida clinched it with a pair of kills. Alexander was the offensive juggernaut once again with eight kills in the set to do as much as she could for the Mizzou offense.
The Tigers are now 1-4 in the SEC, their worst conference start in the Sullivan era; due largely to facing some of the best the conference has to offer. Regardless, the clock is now ticking. Mizzou is now in need of a big win when they travel to face Auburn at 3 p.m. on Sunday on the road. The game will be available to watch on SECN+ through the ESPN app.
