Volleyball Hosts Texas A&M and #24 Auburn to Continue Final Homestand

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Missouri Volleyball team (15-9, 7-6 SEC) continues its five-match homestand this weekend, hosting Texas A&M (15-8, 7-6 SEC) on Friday, followed by #24 Auburn (18-6, 8-5 SEC) on Sunday. First serve for Friday’s match against the Aggies is scheduled for 6 p.m., CT, at the Hearnes Center while Sunday’s contest against Auburn is slated for 3 p.m., CT. 

Both matches will be televised on SEC Network+ with Max Thoma and Riley Rohler on the broadcast. 

Due to the overlap between Mizzou Volleyball and Men’s Basketball, all Volleyball fans are being asked to park in TAPS garage (Level 3 and above). Lots labeled A, B, L, M and Founder’s will have limited available parking spaces. The other lots surrounding Hearnes Center will not allow entry to park, unless you have the proper parking pass for Mizzou Basketball. Shuttles will be running back and forth from TAPS to the Hearnes Center to help with the inconvenience.

The Tigers are currently ranked 32nd in RPI (Rating Percentage Index).

With one more win, Missouri can match its overall win total from 2020 (16-8, 15-7 SEC), when the Tigers last made an NCAA Tournament appearance. Mizzou most recently surpassed its combined win total of 14 matches over the past two seasons, with a victory over Georgia on Nov. 5.

Missouri has seen a 240 percent increase in attendance at Hearnes this season.

Tickets for Friday and Sunday’s matches are $4 each and can be purchased online.

PROMOTIONS     

• Friday’s contest is Military Appreciation Night, as the Tigers will recognize those who have served.

• Fans in attendance Friday can receive Military Appreciation T-Shirts, while supplies last.  

• On Sunday, Mizzou will celebrate Girl Scouts Day and Girls Day Out. The Tigers will host a pre-match clinic for local Girls Scout in attendance. 

• Fans in attendance Sunday can also receive a Mizzou wine glass, while supplies last. 

•  Following both matches, fans will have the chance to grab post-match autographs from the 2023 Mizzou Volleyball team. 

TEXAS A&M SERIES HISTORY     

• Texas A&M leads the all-time series with Mizzou, 33-20, but the Tigers beat the Aggies in College Station, Texas, in the initial meeting earlier this season. 

• Missouri most recently bested the Aggies, 3-1, Oct. 1 on the road. 

• Prior to the win, Mizzou split a two-match series against Texas A&M in Columbia, Missouri, during the 2022 season. The Tigers swept Texas A&M on Nov. 19, 2022, before falling to the Aggies 3-0 the following day (Nov. 20, 2022). 

• Mizzou is 15-11 all-time at home against the Aggies. 

• In the all-time series, Missouri claimed five-straight victories over Texas A&M, from Sept. 24, 2017, to March 20, 2021.

AUBURN SERIES HISTORY 

• Missouri leads the all-time series against Auburn, 15-3. 

• Sunday’s match will mark the second meeting between the two teams this season. 

• In their previous meeting, Mizzou swept Auburn on the road in Auburn, Alabama on Oct. 20. 

• In Auburn’s last appearance at the Hearnes Center, Missouri split a two-match series with the Tigers. Mizzou fell short in a five-set thriller on Oct. 15, 2022, before besting Auburn, 3-1, the following day (Oct. 16, 2022). 

• Mizzou is 6-1 all-time at the Hearnes Center against Auburn.

• In the all-time series, Missouri claimed 12-straight victories over Auburn, from Sept. 4, 2011, to Oct. 18, 2019.     

ILIFF NAMED SEC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK 

•  Jordan Iliff was named the SEC Offensive Player of the Week on Monday, after pacing Missouri the front row with 37 kills (4.63 kills/set) and 20 digs (2.50 digs/set) over the span of two matches.

• The six-rotation right side had a career day in the Tigers’ latest win over Georgia, as she totaled a personal-best 22 kills (.289) for her eighth 15-plus kill outing of the season. Iliff also added seven digs, five blocks, two aces and an assist (Nov. 5). 

• Iliff completed her fifth double-double of the season, recording a team-high 15 kills on a season-best .619 hitting clip, along with 13 digs against Mississippi State on Nov. 3.

• The junior currently ranks fifth in the SEC for points (366.5, 4.07 points/set, seventh). Iliff is also averaging 3.39 kills per set (14th in the SEC, 305 kills).

• In SEC play, she ranks ninth for points (4.24 points/set, 212.0 points). 

• Iliff has compiled double-digit kills in each of the last 10 matches. 

• She previously earned SEC Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 23, after recording 13 kills (.357), eight digs, two blocks and a pair of aces in Mizzou’s 3-0 road sweep over #23 Auburn on Oct. 20. 

• The St. Louis, native, has totaled 10 or more kills in 19 matches this season. 

• Iliff has logged 22 total aces in SEC play and ranks third in the league with 0.44 aces per set.

• The six-rotation hitter has also provided a steady presence for Mizzou in the back row, recording 18 matches with five-plus digs. 

• The junior posted eight or more digs in nine-consecutive matches for Mizzou from Sept. 24 to Oct. 25, including a career-high 15 against South Carolina (Sept. 24) to spur the run. 

• Iliff tallied a previous-career-best day against the Gamecocks (Sept. 24), logging 21 kills on an impressive .455 clip (one error on 44 total attacks). 

• She paces the team and ranks sixth in the SEC for aces (33), averaging 0.37 aces per set. In league competition, Iliff ranks third with 0.44 aces per set (22 aces). 

•  The pin hitter started the season with a bang, logging double-digit kills in five consecutive matches, from Aug. 25 through Sept. 2. Iliff commenced the season with 19 kills in the 2023 opener against Illinois State on Aug. 25.

DUDLEY NAMED SEC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK  

• Sierra Dudley earned SEC Freshman of the Week on Monday, after dishing out 93 assists as Missouri hit .339 over its two-match SEC slate this past week.

• The freshman opened the week with 43 assists to go with two kills and two digs as the Tigers hit a season-best team hitting percentage of .458 in a 3-0 sweep of Mississippi State on Nov. 3.

• Dudley then registered her 13th match with at least 40 assists (third 50 or more assist match) this season with 50, adding eight digs, three kills, two blocks, and an ace as Mizzou hit .260 as a team in the Tigers’ five-set victory over Georgia on Nov. 5.

• For Dudley, the weekly recognition marked the second for her in 2023. The setter earned SEC Co-Freshman of the Week after she registered a career-best 60 assists and 12 digs in the Tigers’ first matchup against Ole Miss on Oct. 15. 

• Dudley’s stat column against the Rebels not only marked the second-highest total assists for an SEC setter this season in conference play, but also was the most assists by a Tiger setter since Andrea Fuentes registered 62 assists against Alabama on Nov. 8, 2019. 

• The freshman ranks fourth in the SEC with 901 assists this season (10.12 assists/set, fifth in the SEC). In league action, she is fifth with 10.84 assists per set (531 assists). 

• Dudley has posted 40 or more assists in each of the last three matches and 30 or more in each of the last 12 matches.

• She has recorded nine matches with at least 45 assists during the 2023 campaign. 

• Behind the 10-foot line, the freshman has logged 19 matches with five or more digs, including securing double-digit digs eight times this season.

• Her time as a Tiger got off to an impressive start, as Dudley registered 52 assists in Missouri’s third match of the season against Colgate on Aug. 27. She combined for 146 assists over the season-opening Mizzou Classic (Aug. 25-27).   

GEORGIA RECAP      

• Missouri most recently edged Georgia in a five-set thriller at home on Nov. 5.

• Jordan Iliff had a banner night, registering a career-high 22 kills (.289) for her eighth 15-plus kill outing of the season. The junior also snagged seven digs, five blocks, two aces and an assist.

• Morgan Isenberg clocked a career-high 10 blocks to complement seven kills on a .500 hitting clip (Nov. 5). The last Tiger to record double-digit blocks was Trista Strasser against Northern Kentucky on Aug. 26, 2022. 

• Janet deMarrais extended her double-digit kill streak to 14 matches with 12 against Georgia. The sophomore also put up five digs and two blocks.

• Graduate student Dilara Gedikoglu recorded her second straight 11-kill outing against Georgia. The outside also tallied nine digs, five assists and an ace.

•  Colleen Finney also produced nine kills out of the middle on a .529 clip to go with a pair of solo blocks, marking her second nine-kill match in 2023. 

• Libero Maya Sands grabbed 16 digs to go with six assists.

•  Freshman setter Sierra Dudley distributed 50 assists to tally her third 50-plus assist match this season. Dudley also logged eight digs, three kills, two blocks and an ace against the Bulldogs.

MISSISSIPPI STATE RECAP      

• Missouri swept Mississippi State at the Hearnes Center on Nov. 3 to jumpstart its five-game homestand. The sweep was Mizzou’s sixth in 2023 and third in SEC play.

• During Friday’s contest, the Tigers’ registered a season-best hitting percentage of .458, the first .450-plus match since the Tigers hit .526 against Kansas City on Sept. 14, 2019.

• Jordan Iliff led the way for the Tigers with a team-high 15 kills (on a season-best .619 hitting clip) to go along with 13 digs, completing her fifth double-double of the season. Iliff also added two aces, two blocks and an assist. 

• Janet deMarrais finished with 11 kills on a .357 hitting percentage. The sophomore added seven digs to go with a block and an assist.

• Dilara Gedikoglu notched 11 kills (hitting a season-best clip of .429), to complement a career-best three aces (ninth time), two digs and a pair of assists.

• Colleen Finney added eight kills (.429) out of the middle against the Bulldogs (Nov. 3). Finney also contributed a pair of blocks.

• Naomi Franco reached 500 career kills against Mississippi State, after clocking two kills during the contest. Franco notched 479 kills over three seasons at Syracuse prior to transferring to Missouri.

•  Libero Maya Sands scooped up 20 digs, marking her 12th match of the season with 20-plus digs. Sands also chipped in three assists and an ace.

• Freshman setter Sierra Dudley dished out 43 assists against the Bulldogs to go with two kills and two digs.  

OUR LIBERO   

• Libero Maya Sands grabbed 16 digs to go with six assists in Sunday’s (Nov. 5) five-set thriller over Georgia, marking her 16th match of the 2023 campaign with 15-plus digs, including five of the last six contests.

• Sands registered 20 digs in the Tiger’s sweep of Mississippi State on Nov. 3, marking her 12th 20-plus dig outing of the season. The sophomore also added three assists and an ace. 

• Sands has registered 20 or more digs in seven of the last 10 matches, including three of the last four contests.

• Throughout the 2023 campaign, Sands has posted double-digit digs in every match of the season and has registered six performances of 24-plus digs (four 24-dig matches in 2023).

• Sands was previously named the SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week after she grabbed a career-high 30 digs to go with two assists and an ace against Ole Miss on Oct. 15. The outing was the second-highest dig total in the SEC this season.

• She currently leads the conference with 4.77 digs per set (34th in the NCAA) and career-best 434 digs (47th in the NCAA) in 2023, after compiling 412 digs her freshman season at UNLV. 

•  In league play, she paces the conference with 249 digs (4.98 digs/set).

• The libero also ranks second on the Tigers behind the service line with 30 aces (0.33 aces/set). She has tallied a season-best three aces in four separate matches this season.    

DEMARRAIS ALL THE WAY 

• Janet deMarrais extended her double-digit kill streak to 14 matches, after clocking 12 on Sunday (Nov. 5) against Georgia. She also put up five digs and two blocks in the Tigers’ five-set victory.

• The sophomore also finished with 11 kills against Mississippi State on a .357 hitting clip (Nov. 3). deMarrais added seven digs to go with a block and an assist.

• The outside has clocked double-digit kills 15 times this season, including three matches with 20 or more kills.  

• In the back row, deMarrais has tallied six-plus digs in 10 of the last 12 matches, including a career-best 13 digs against Ole Miss on Oct. 15 to complement a career-best 30 kills for her second career double-double. 

•  deMarrais registered a then career-best 24 kills on a .400 clip in the match prior at Alabama on Oct. 11.

•  The Colleyville, Texas, native, registered 15 or more kills in five-straight contests (Oct. 1 through Oct. 15), including 18 in her home state at Texas A&M on Oct. 1. 

•  The sophomore ranks third in the SEC in league play with 4.12 kills per set (206 kills) and 4.70 points per set (235 points).

• Overall, deMarrais ranks 16th in the league for kills per set (3.15, 271 kills).

• She has registered 14 total aces so far during the 2023 campaign, including a career-best three, three times.

• deMarrais has appeared in the Mizzou starting lineup in each of the last 13 matches, dating back to the Tigers’ SEC opener at Tennessee on Sept. 20. She previously had started in Mizzou’s first two matches of the season Aug. 25-26 (Illinois State and Central Arkansas) at the Mizzou Classic.

MO MAKING MOVES

• Morgan Isenberg reached a new career milestone in Mizzou’s match against Georgia on Nov. 5, putting up a personal-best 10 blocks, while adding seven kills on a .500 clip. 

• The junior’s 10-block performance marks the first time a Tiger has posted double-digit blocks since Trista Strasser recorded the feat against Northern Kentucky (Aug. 26, 2022).  

• Isenberg has registered three-plus blocks 20 times this season, including 11 of the Tigers’ last 12 contests.

• At the net, the junior has clocked five or more blocks 11 times in the 2023 campaign, including eight against #12 Tennessee on Oct. 25. Isenberg also tallied five kills against the Lady Vols. 

• The middle blocker has registered 15 matches with five or more kills this season, including three double-digit kill contests. 

• She registered eight kills on a .727 hitting clip at #23 Auburn on Oct. 20, while adding three blocks and career-best matching two digs. The outing marked the middle blocker’s second-straight eight-kill match. The hitting percentage was Mizzou’s highest since Kenna Sauer posted a mark of .700 at Ole Miss on Nov. 21, 2020.

• The Wildwood, Missouri, native, ranks 31st nationally and third in the SEC with 114 total blocks (1.30 blocks/set, fourth in the SEC, 29th in the NCAA) this season.

•  In SEC play, she ranks fourth with 1.31 blocks/set (63 blocks).

•  Isenberg also notched a career-best 16 kills on a .444 hitting clip to help the Tigers secure a five-set win over Xavier on Sept. 9.

GEDIKOGLU, MORE THAN JUST A FUN NAME TO SAY    

• Dilara Gedikoglu has posted 11 kills in each of the last two contests for the Tigers. The graduate student also registered nine digs, five assists, and an ace in Missouri’s win over Georgia on Nov. 5.

• Gedikoglu also tallied 11 kills, hitting a season-best hitting clip of .429, in Mizzou’s sweep of Mississippi on Nov. 3. She also had three aces (career-best, ninth time), two digs and a pair of assists.

• The six-rotation outside has posted double-digit digs in four of the last eight matches. She has been crucial in Mizzou’s serve-receive, being targeted 62 times against Georgia on Nov. 5 and only committing two errors. 

• Gedikoglu compiled eight-plus digs in eight-straight matches, spanning from Sept. 24 through Oct. 20. 

• She tallied her seventh double-double of the season in the Tigers’ win over Ole Miss on Oct. 15, recording 14 kills (.313 hitting percentage) and 12 digs. Gedikoglu also added a block and an ace against the Rebels.

• The graduate student has finished in double-digits attacking 13 times this season, including 14 kills four times.  

• The Alanya, Turkey, native, compiled a season-best 20 kills to go with 13 digs in her third match as a Tiger against Colgate on Aug. 27.  

• Gedikoglu ranks second and third, respectively, on Mizzou with 213 digs (2.37 digs/set) and 236 kills (2.62 kills/set).

•  In her career, Gedikoglu enters the week with 920 kills and 909 digs.

500 CAREER KILLS 

• Naomi Franco reached 500 career kills on Nov. 3 against Mississippi State, after she registered a pair on a .667 hitting clip. 

• Franco, a senior from Fayetteville, Georgia, has registered 21 kills over 15 matches this season with Mizzou. She notched 479 kills over three seasons at Syracuse prior to transferring to Missouri.

•  Colleen Finney also surpassed 500 career kills this season, overcoming the milestone against Ole Miss on Oct. 29, with seven kills on a .500 hitting percentage. 

• Finney, a graduate student from Blythewood, South Carolina, has started in all 24 contests this season. She has compiled 115 kills (1.29 kills/set) in 2023, after totaling 408 kills over three seasons at Clemson prior to transferring to Mizzou. 

ABOUT THE TIGERS

• Head coach Dawn Sullivan enters her first season at the helm of the program in 2023.
• Sullivan amassed a 109-38 (.741) mark over five seasons at UNLV, leading the Rebels to five-straight postseason appearances and a pair of Mountain West Championships.
• Sullivan has added seven transfers and four freshmen since her arrival in Mid-Missouri this past December.
• The Tigers returned juniors Jordan Iliff, Lauren Forbes, Morgan Isenberg, and sophomores Madilyn Sell and Janet deMarrais from the 2022 team.
• Iliff, a right side hitter from St. Louis, was named to the 2023 USA Volleyball Women’s Collegiate National Team in June. The junior was third on Mizzou offensively in 2022 with 227 kills (2.39 kills per set).

NEW FACES ON THE BENCH

• The 2023 team features a multitude of new staff members in addition to head coach Dawn Sullivan.
• Cullen Irons, who coached with Sullivan at UNLV, was added as an assistant coach in January.
• Wendel Camargo and Arielle Wilson will serve as Sullivan’s Recruiting Coordinators. Wilson, a four-time NCAA Champion, and four-time Big Ten Champion at Penn State, is also the Defensive Coordinator.
• Technical Coordinator Jhenna Gabriel competed for Sullivan at UNLV in 2022, helping the Rebels secure the Mountain West Regular-Season Championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. Gabriel also earned All-American honors at Texas before her graduate transfer season at UNLV.

NEWCOMERS

• The 2023 team features 11 newcomers with seven transfers and four freshmen.
• Libero Maya Sands was Dawn Sullivan‘s first addition in January, transferring to Mizzou from UNLV.
• Other transfers include right side hitter Naomi Franco, setter Luisa Melloni, setter Sarah White, right side hitter/middle hitter Kimani Johnson, outside hitter Dilara Gedikoglu and middle blocker Colleen Finney.
• Sullivan also signed four freshmen in setter/libero Tatum Longnecker, outside hitter/right side hitter Chapel Dobbs, Columbia libero Kaylen Rush and setter Sierra Dudley.    

LOOKING AHEAD

• Missouri next concludes its five-match homestand at the Hearnes Center, hosting #20 Florida on Friday, Nov. 17 for Senior Night and Friendsgiving.

• First serve is set for 6:30 p.m., CT. The match will be streamed on SEC Network+.

• Following that contest, Missouri hits the road to face #13 Kentucky, on Sunday, Nov. 19 and Georgia on Saturday, Nov. 25.

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.
• Single-Match and Season Tickets for Mizzou Volleyball are currently on sale now at mutigers.com/feature/VBTix.