AUSTIN, Texas – The University of Missouri volleyball team (16-5, 7-2 SEC) overcame No. 9 Texas (12-5, 7-2 SEC) in five sets (21-25, 25-19, 17-25, 26-24, 15-10) Friday evening at Gregory Gymnasium.
With the victory, Mizzou extended its win streak to seven matches and is now tied for first in the SEC with Texas and Kentucky at 7-2.
The win also marked the first for the Tigers over Texas, the defending back-to-back National Champions, since Sept. 23, 2006, in Columbia, Missouri (3-0 win) and the first victory in Austin over the Longhorns since Sept. 18, 2002 (3-1 win).
Texas transfer and Austin, Texas, native, Marina Crownover registered a 51-assist, 10-dig double-double in her return to Gregory Gymnasium. She also had a career-best six kills on an .857 clip with two aces and two blocks. Crownover, the reigning SEC Setter of the Week, recorded her eighth double-double in 2024 Friday.
Three Tigers finished in double-digits attacking paced by Jordan Iliff’s 18 kills to go with 15 digs, two assists, an ace and a block. The double-double was her 10th of the campaign.
Mychael Vernon also tallied a double-double, finishing with 16 kills, 10 digs, two aces and two blocks. The double-double marked the 11th of the season for Vernon.
Janet deMarrais totaled 15 kills and two digs in her home state of Texas.
Libero Maya Sands grabbed 12 digs as four Tigers finished in double-digits defensively. She also had four assists and two aces.
Mizzou hit a match-high .500 clip in the fifth set after .273 in the fourth.
FIRST SET (25-21 Texas, Texas leads 1-0)
Texas jumped out to a 5-2 lead Friday.
The Tigers then utilized a 4-0 run that included an Iliff ace to pull ahead 9-8. She added a kill for a 10-9 lead.
The Longhorns then rallied off five-straight points for a 14-10 edge and went to the media stoppage up 15-12.
A kill from deMarrais would trim the deficit to 18-16 before a 3-0 rally for Texas made the score 21-16.
Mizzou then pulled within one (21-20) after three-straight kills coupled with a Longhorn error.
Texas then won the set on a 4-1 run (25-21).
SECOND SET (25-19 Mizzou, Tied 1-1)
Mizzou raced out to an 8-1 lead in the second. Texas burned an early timeout with the score at 5-1. Sands placed an ace to wrap the 8-1 run.
Regan Haith then tallied a kill before a Vernon ace brought the score to 11-3.
The Longhorns then knotted the frame at 13-13 on a 7-1 rally.
Crownover then registered a setter kill before a solo block from Haith to make the score 16-14.
A 4-0 Tigers run that featured a pair of Crownover aces extended the lead to 20-15.
The Longhorns would come as close as 21-19 before a 4-0 rally evened the match at 1-1 (25-18).
deMarrais had a pair of kills over the final four points while Kaylen Rush had an ace. It marked Rush’s third ace of the campaign and third in seven matches.
THIRD SET (25-17 Texas, Texas leads 2-1)
The third frame featured 10 ties and seven lead changes.
Mizzou took an early 5-3 lead before a 4-0 run by Texas provided the home team a 7-5 edge.
Iliff, Haith and deMarrais then all registered kills as Mizzou hit 10 points first (10-9).
Texas then went on a 6-1 run to take a 17-13 advantage.
Iliff notched a pair of kills to bring Mizzou within three (18-15) and a pair of Longhorn errors made the score 21-17.
Texas then secured the frame with four-straight points (25-17).
FOURTH SET (26-24 Mizzou, Tied at 2-2)
Texas grabbed an early 7-4 lead after five consecutive points before going up 10-7.
A kill from Vernon coupled with a pair of Longhorn errors knotted the set at 12-12. The fourth set featured 10 ties.
Consecutive kills from Haith followed by a termination by deMarrais provided the Tigers a 15-14 lead.
With the set tied at 18-18, Mizzou scored three-straight points for a 21-18 advantage. Finney had a kill before a block assist followed by a Sands ace.
Vernon slammed a kill for set point (24-22) before Texas retied the set at 24-24.
Mizzou then forced a fifth set after a service error and an Iliff kill (26-24).
Vernon had six kills (.300) over the fourth stanza while deMarrais had four (.312). Crownover had 15 assists.
FIFTH SET (15-10 Mizzou, Mizzou wins 3-2)
Iliff notched a kill to even the set early at 4-4.
deMarrais and Finney then posted consecutive terminations for a 6-5 lead that grew to 9-7 following three-straight kills from Vernon.
A Longhorns service error made the score 10-8 as Mizzou had match point (14-9) after a 4-0 run that featured a kill and an ace from Vernon along with a pair of rally stoppers by Iliff.
Texas would fend off match point once with a Madisen Skinner kill (14-10) before Mizzou secured the victory on an attack error.
Vernon and Iliff each had four kills over the final set while Crownover had 10 assists.
MATCH NOTES
- Texas transfer and Austin, Texas, native, Marina Crownover registered a 51-assist, 10-dig double-double in her return to Gregory Gymnasium. She also had a career-best six kills on an .857 clip with two aces and two blocks.
- Marina Crownover recorded her eighth double-double in 2024 Friday.
- Marina Crownover has registered 30 or more assists in each of the past seven matches and 44 or more in each of the last six SEC matches (51 or more assists in each of the last five matches).
- Three Tigers finished in double-digits attacking paced by Jordan Iliff’s 18 kills to go with 15 digs, two assists, an ace and a block. The double-double was her 10th of the campaign.
- Jordan Iliff has finished in double-digits offensively in six of the last seven matches.
- Jordan Iliff posted an ace Friday and now has 54 in 2024 which ranks tied for fifth all-time in Mizzou program history with Shen Danru (2003).
- Mychael Vernon also tallied a double-double, finishing with 16 kills, 10 digs, two aces and two blocks. The double-double marked the 11th of the season for Vernon.
- Mychael Vernon has finished in double-figures offensively in each of the last seven matches.
- Janet deMarrais totaled 15 kills and two digs in her home state of Texas.
- Janet deMarrais has finished with 10 or more kills in five-straight matches (six of the last seven).
- Regan Haith chipped in six kills (.286) and five blocks with a dig. She has notched six or more kills and three or more blocks in each of the last four matches. The five-block outing was her fourth of the campaign.
- Colleen Finney added five kills on a .385 hitting percentage with a block. She has posted five or more kills in each of the last four matches.
- Libero Maya Sands grabbed 12 digs as four Tigers finished in double-digits defensively. She also had four assists and two aces.
- Kiaraliz Perez Catala recorded four digs and a season-best three assists in the start.
- Marina Crownover and Mizzou Technical Coordinator Jhenna Gabriel both made their return to Texas where the two both played as setters.
- Mizzou finished with 10 aces for the sixth time in 2024 (seventh double-digit ace match).
- With the victory, Mizzou extended its win streak to seven matches and is now tied for first in the SEC with Texas and Kentucky at 7-2.
- The win also marked the first for the Tigers over Texas since Sept. 23, 2006, in Columbia, Missouri (3-0 win) and the first victory in Austin over the Longhorns since Sept. 18, 2002 (3-1 win).
- Texas now leads the all-time series with Missouri, 22-11.
- Mizzou’s five-match SEC win streak is the longest since the Tigers won six straight league matches Nov. 4 to Jan. 30 during the 2020-21 season.
- Mizzou is now 4-1 in five-set matches in 2024.
- Mizzou’s ranked win was its first of the season (four top-25 ranked matches thus far in 2024).
- Mizzou’s win over No. 9 Texas is its first top-25 win since a 3-1 win over No. 24 Auburn Nov. 12, 2024. It also was Mizzou’s first top-9 win since defeating No. 5 Florida Nov. 20, 2016.
- Mizzou was featured on SEC Network for the third time in 2024 Friday. It was also MU’s first of three consecutive linear broadcasts.
LOOKING AHEAD
- The Tigers next return to Columbia, Missouri, for a three-match homestand.
- Mizzou will host Georgia on Wednesday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m., CT before wrapping the week against South Carolina on Sunday, Nov. 10. Both matches will be featured on SEC Network.
- Tickets to Georgia and South Carolina are current on special for $4 each and can be purchased online.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
- For all the latest information on Mizzou Volleyball, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Tigers on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
