Mizzou volleyball handles Mississippi State in three sets

Though Mizzou grabbed a 15-7 lead after back-to-back kills from Paige Felder, the Bulldogs used a 6-0 run to get back into the set. Eventually, Mississippi State took a lead for the first time in the match, going up 21-19 and forcing a timeout out of Missouri coach Dawn Sullivan.

“We started getting a little bit fast paced and outside of ourself,” Sullivan said.

The Bulldogs held their advantage briefly before Claire Morrissey, one of Sunday’s heroes, got a kill, and Eva Smith roofed an attack to tie the set 22-22. Smith then notched a kill before Johnson called game on her second chance.

“The first ball, I knew I wasn’t probably going to be able to score,” Johnson said. “So I said my best bet is to get them out of system, put their right side on the ground, and I did that. Once they sent the free ball over, I said, ‘I need it. Like I need it now. Give it to me, Nina (Mandovic).’”

Set 2 was close, but it never felt like a Tigers win was in jeopardy. They got out to a 9-5 lead before the Bulldogs struck for four in a row to make it 9-9. However, Missouri pulled it together quickly, getting back out in front and pacing Mississippi State from there to win the set 25-21.

Throughout this season, the game plan has been to serve tough. Early in the match, Sullivan felt her team was able to hit on that goal.

“I thought we did a really nice job early,” Sullivan said. “Just serving some of those seams, kind of getting them in a space they couldn’t run the middle, at least took one option out.”

Another game plan for Missouri today was to shut down Lindsey Mangelson, the Bulldogs top-scorer, and it did just that, holding her to a -.029 hitting percentage.

“We had to do a really good job (against) her. I think Kimani, you were on her,” Sullivan said while laughing with the outside hitter.

Missouri got off to a hot start in the match, and something looked different about the team. Mississippi State didn’t do itself any favors with eight errors through the set.

The Tigers went on a pair of 4-0 runs to get out to a 21-10 lead in the set. Mississippi managed to keep things within reach early, but the first four-point run for Missouri got it in front by seven. The Tigers coasted to a 25-13 Set 1 win.

Mizzou moved faster, made smart decisions and kept Mississippi State on its heels as the two moved to Set 2.

“For me, it felt like a go-getter mindset,” Johnson said. “Just playing really aggressive. I knew what I was playing for. I told them at the beginning in our huddle, I said, ‘Hey, we’re balling out for Lauren.’ We’re finishing this game in three (sets). I don’t care what it takes.”

Missouri hosted its Dig Pink, or pink out, night for breast cancer awareness. Missouri assistant coach Lauren Cost, who Johnson is referencing to, is a breast cancer survivor.

“It’s hard what they go through every single day, and how lonely they probably feel,” Sullivan said. “They don’t want to burden anybody with everything they have and what they feel. But then also how strong they are in that loneliness sometimes. For me, I’m just really grateful that I could just spend time with Lauren. ... She is just one incredible human being.”

Nina Mandovic added more insight into the light that Cost shines on the team.

“She’s definitely just a person that walks into a room and just brings light and joy,” Mandovic said. “And if you didn’t know she had cancer, you would never know because she never shows it. ... She genuinely beat that, and she doesn’t care that’s in the past, and she’s just gotten stronger.”

Johnson added to the compliments.

“She has such a warmth to her that spreads throughout our team,” she said. “It’s really nice to see that and share that with her every day.”

Missouri recorded 47 kills on 102 attempts for a .353 hitting percentage. The Tigers had four service errors with two aces, 48 digs and six blocks.

Felder and Johnson both recorded double-digit kill performances, with Felder notching 14 and Johnson tallying 10. Nine Tigers ended up getting at least one kill.

In the back row, Ainoah Cruz and Zoey Matias-Lopez were the unsung heroes for the Tigers as the two combined for 23 kills. After three straight digs in a single play, Cruz finished a point off herself with a kill from one of her digs.

Missouri (10-8, 3-3 Southeastern Conference) hosts Alabama (9-6, 1-5) at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Hearnes Center.