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ATHENS, Ga. – Jordan Iliff and Janet deMarrais each tallied 10 kills as the University of Missouri Volleyball team (17-12, 9-9 SEC) fell to Georgia (19-11, 10-8 SEC), 25-18, 25-17, 25-19, Saturday afternoon at the Stegeman Coliseum to wrap the 2023 regular season.
Dilara Gedikoglu chipped in nine kills (.263) with a trio of digs while Colleen Finney, a Blythewood, South Carolina, native, finished with five kills (.333) to go with two blocks and a dig.
Mizzou concludes SEC play with a .500 mark (9-9) for seventh in the standings after being selected 12th in the 2023 preseason poll.
The Tigers who are currently ranked 32nd in RPI (Rating Percentage Index) will now await their postseason destination with the 2023 NCAA Selection Show slated for 5 p.m., CT Sunday on ESPN.
Mizzou looks to make its 18th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history and earn its first berth since 2020.
FIRST SET (25-18, Georgia leads 1-0)
Georgia opened the match with a 3-1 lead that grew to 8-3 after four-straight unanswered points.
Iliff placed an ace to cut the Bulldogs lead to 9-7.
She then added a kill after a Finney termination to keep Mizzou within three, 13-10.
Iliff, a rightside hitter from St. Louis, then crushed consecutive rally stoppers to make the score 14-12.
The Bulldogs answered with a 4-0 run to widen the margin to 18-12.
Following a UGA service error, Mizzou trimmed the edge to 20-16 after a Finney and Iliff block assist.
Missouri would come as close as 24-18 courtesy of a Gedikoglu kill before Georgia took the opening set Saturday.
Iliff had four kills to commence the match.
SECOND SET (25-17, Georgia leads 2-0)
Georgia continued its momentum into the second stanza, starting the set with a 6-2 advantage.
Gedikoglu then knocked a pair of kills before teaming up with Finney on a block to cut the early deficit to 7-6.
The Bulldogs went into the media stoppage up 15-12 before continuing a 3-0 run to pull ahead 17-12 and bring on a Mizzou timeout.
Georgia then went on another 3-0 rally (21-14) as Missouri called its second of two timeouts.
Sierra Dudley, Gedikoglu and deMarrais each chipped in kills to make the score 22-17 before the Bulldogs moved ahead 2-0 in the match with three-straight points.
Georgia hit over .300 in all three sets Saturday including a .536 second set.
Gedikoglu had four kills (.286) to pace the Tigers in the second followed by Iliff (.500) and deMarrais who each had three, respectively.
THIRD SET (25-19, Georgia wins 3-0)
The third set featured five ties and five lead changes as Mizzou took an early 5-3 lead after four-straight points.
The Tigers then went up 7-6 with a deMarrais kill followed by an Isenberg and Iliff block assist.
The Bulldogs rattled off a 4-0 rally to pull ahead 10-7 and bring on Mizzou’s first timeout.
Iliff posted a service ace and Finney terminated from the middle to keep the UGA lead at one (11-10 and 12-11).
Georgia then utilized a 3-0 run for a 19-14 advantage.
Finney blasted a kill to make the score 20-17 before consecutive rally stoppers from Gedikoglu and deMarrais cut the lead to 21-19.
The Bulldogs then closed out the match on a 4-0 run to even the 2023 series between the two institutions at 1-1.
deMarrais eclipsed double-digit kills with five in the final frame Saturday. Gedikoglu (1.000), Iliff (.333) and Finney (.400) each tallied three.
MATCH NOTES
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Jordan Iliff and Janet deMarrais each tallied 10 kills to pace Mizzou offensively.
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Jordan Iliff added three digs, a pair of service aces, two blocks and an assist.
- Jordan Iliff has now registered double-digit kills in 15 of the last 17 matches (14 of the last 15 matches) for Mizzou. She has clocked 10 or more kills in 23 matches this season.
- Janet deMarrais has now posted nine or more kills in each of the last 19 contests. She added an assist and a dig Saturday at Georgia.
- In 2023, Janet deMarrais has clocked double-digit kills 19 times, including three matches with 20 or more kills.
- Dilara Gedikoglu chipped in nine kills (.263) with a trio of digs. The outside hitter has registered double-digit kills in five of the past seven matches.
- Colleen Finney, a Blythewood, South Carolina, native, finished with five kills (.333) to go with two blocks and a dig.
- Colleen Finney has posted five or more kills in each of the last two matches.
- Freshman setter Sierra Dudley tallied 29 assists, five digs and two kills.
- Sierra Dudley, a Spartanburg, South Carolina, native, has posted 20 or more assists in 17 straight matches this season. Dudley has also finished with 40 or more assists 16 times in 2023 including seven of the last eight matches.
- Libero Maya Sands grabbed 13 digs with two assists and a kill. Sands has posted double-digit digs in every match this season. She has posted 13 or more digs in each of the last nine matches and 13 digs in two of the last three matches.
- Mizzou concludes SEC play with a .500 mark (9-9) for seventh in the standings after being selected 12th in the 2023 preseason poll.
- Georgia and Mizzou wrapped the 2023 series tied at 1-1 with each team winning in its respective building.
LOOKING AHEAD
- Mizzou will next watch the 2023 NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Sunday, to see the Tigers postseason destination. The show will be broadcasted on ESPN at 5 p.m., CT.
- Mizzou looks to make its 18th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history and earn its first berth since 2020.
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 Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
