The Missouri volleyball team gave its seniors a final home match to remember Sunday afternoon, sweeping No. 17 Texas A&M 25-20, 25-21, 25-23 at the Hearnes Center.
Behind a dominant defensive performance and a career afternoon from fifth-year outside hitter Kimani Johnson, the Tigers (15-10, 8-5 SEC) earned their second top-25 victory at home this month. The win marked Mizzou’s first sweep of a ranked opponent since defeating No. 23 Auburn on Oct. 23, 2023, and its second victory against a defending
national champion in program history.
Johnson led the Tigers with 11 kills on 19 attempts, good for a .526 hitting percentage, while recording a career-high seven total blocks. Sophomore Paige Felder added 10 kills, reaching double-digit kills for the 13th time this season. The Tigers also held Texas A&M to a .214 hitting percentage.
The victory came two days after Mizzou suffered a sweep against No. 13 Texas, giving the Tigers an opportunity to respond in their final home match of the regular season.
“I think it was just the overall energy and mindset of the team,” Eva Smith said. “After that loss, everybody was pretty upset. It was a bad loss. So we used that and it pushed us to want to be more hungry to play this game and take care of business.”
Mizzou established control early in the opening set, turning a close start into a commanding advantage. After trading points through the opening exchanges, the Tigers used a 4-0 scoring run to take a 10-5 lead behind freshman Eva Smith’s defensive presence at the net.
Johnson continued to make her presence felt, contributing a kill and two blocks during a stretch that helped Mizzou build an 18-11 advantage. Senior Grace O’Reilly and freshman Lydia Stahley added kills as the Tigers maintained their separation and eventually secured the opening set 25-20.
The second set followed a similar pattern, with Mizzou using its serving and blocking to create separation. Junior Lauren Larkin opened the set with an ace as the Tigers built an early 4-1 lead before Texas A&M responded to cut the deficit.
Mizzou answered with a six-point run, highlighted by kills from Stahley and Larkin and consecutive service aces from junior setter Nina Mandovic. The run pushed the Tigers ahead 13-7 and forced an Aggies timeout.
Texas A&M made another push late in the set, cutting Mizzou’s advantage to 19-18. Head coach Dawn Sullivan called a timeout, and the Tigers responded with a kill from Larkin and a block from Johnson to restore a three-point cushion. Felder delivered the final kill as Mizzou took the second set 25-21 and moved within one set of the sweep.
The Tigers’ defensive advantage continued to show through the opening two sets, with Mizzou recording 10 blocks compared to Texas A&M’s two.
The Aggies found more offensive rhythm in the third, building a 15-13 lead and later extending it to 19-17. Mizzou needed a response to avoid allowing the match to reach a fourth set, and Johnson provided it.
After Smith and freshman Ceylin Kuyan helped the Tigers work their way back into the set, Johnson recorded a kill and a solo block to tie the score at 19. She followed with three consecutive kills, helping Mizzou take a 22-20 advantage and putting the Hearnes Center crowd on its feet.
Texas A&M eventually tied the set at 22, but Mizzou remained composed. The Tigers won two consecutive points after a timeout, and Felder delivered the final kill to complete the 25-23 victory and the sweep.
Johnson said the team’s mentality during the closing stretch reflected a message that has become central to its identity this season.
“We have this saying on our team, like, we’re never going to be in gazelle mode. We’re going to be in lion mode,” Johnson said. “Nobody’s going to do our job for us. We have to go get this done ourselves, and we have to be hungry enough to go fight for what we want.”
Sullivan praised Johnson’s leadership and the way the team continued to respond when the match became close, pointing to the fifth-year’s willingness to carry the team through difficult stretches.
“She continues to lead and continues to say, ‘OK, climb on my back and let’s go,'” Sullivan said. “She’s never just going to pull back and be that good elevator. She’s just going to go kind of be that lion and attack.”
The victory also strengthened Mizzou’s late-season postseason push. The Tigers earned their second ranked victory of the season after defeating No. 6 Tennessee on Nov. 1, and have won nine of their last 14 matches against Texas A&M.
With three conference matches remaining entering Sunday, Mizzou was looking to finish above .500 in SEC play for the fourth consecutive season under Sullivan. The possibility of hosting NCAA Tournament matches has also become a motivating factor as the team continues to climb.
“We’d love to play,” Sullivan said about the opportunity to host. “That would be incredible for us to have that opportunity to host and to play here again for these fans. But we gotta take care of some things in front of us first.”
The Tigers will have to carry that momentum away from Columbia as they enter the final stretch of the regular season. Mizzou travels to face Oklahoma on Friday at McCasland Field House, with first serve scheduled for 6 p.m. Central time.
For the seniors, Sunday provided one final opportunity to celebrate their home crowd. Johnson said she wanted to leave everything on the court during her final SEC home match, and the Tigers delivered a performance that reflected that mentality.
“We’re not done yet,” Sullivan said. “This team is, I think, just really incredible in the way they continue to show up, knowing what it takes to win games, and they’re on the rise.”
