Texas A&M
11-3, 0-1Big 12
Missouri
14-4, 1-1Big 12
A&M Falls to Missouri in Big 12 Opener
Sep 24, 2011 | Volleyball
"Our serving and passing game was very average, and it ended up to be what I thought was the reason why we couldn't get our offense to be as powerful as it has been," A&M head coach Laurie Corbelli said. "Missouri did some really nice things and both teams played really hard and gave great effort. It was very disappointing to come out on the losing end."
A&M (11-3, 0-1 Big 12), which entered the match 11-0 when winning the first set, never trailed in the opening set as the Aggies outhit the Tigers, .417 to .382. The score was tied nine times throughout the frame and was knotted for the final time at 18-all before Kelsey Black reeled off three of her four kills in the set to put A&M ahead 21-18. The Aggies were leading 22-19 when Missouri posted back-to-back kills. After an A&M timeout, Lindsey Miller got a kill on the slide play to put A&M up, 23-22. Missouri got a kill, but Tori Mellinger answered with a kill to put the Aggies at set point. The Tigers blocked an A&M attack on the next play before Alisia Kastmo put down the set-winning kill.
A&M held a narrow 10-9 edge in the second set when the Tigers scored three unanswered points to take their first lead since 6-5. In a set that saw 11 ties and six lead changes, A&M tied the score at 12 and 13 following kills by Kastmo, but the Aggies, who were outhit, .250 to .229 in the stanza, were unable to pull ahead. Missouri, which never built more than a three-point lead, was up 24-21 and serving for the set when Elise Hendrickson and Miller fought off two set points with back-to-back kills, putting A&M within 24-23. Brittney Brimmage then had a kill to clinch the set for the Tigers and even the match at a set apiece.
There were 10 ties and seven lead changes in the back-and-forth third set. Missouri held a 9-8 lead when A&M went on a 7-1 surge to build its biggest lead of the match at 15-10. Missouri, however, answered with a 9-1 run to take a 19-16 lead. A service error ended a string of seven consecutive points for the Tigers.
Hendrickson had a kill on the next play, and Missouri committed three straight attack errors to put A&M back in the lead at 21-19. Brimmage caromed a kill off the block to put Missouri within a point, but Mellinger countered with consecutive kills to put the Aggies ahead, 23-20. A&M then committed one of its 11 service errors on the day, and Missouri followed with a kill to once again get within a point, 23-22.
A&M, which outhit Missouri, .237 to .222 in the frame, called a timeout following the kill by Lisa Henning, and Mellinger came back with a kill through the block to put A&M serving for the set. Mellinger's kill, however, would mark the final point for the Aggies, as Missouri reeled off four consecutive points, scoring on three kills and a block for the late come-from-behind win.
The Tigers carried the momentum into the start of the fourth set, jumping out to a 9-3 lead before A&M began to get on track and make a comeback. Miller served two consecutive aces, and setter Allie Sawatzky had a kill on a second-ball attack during a 5-0 run for A&M. A kill by Tiger setter Molly Kreklow only temporarily ended the Aggies' scoring streak, as A&M quickly erupted for another 5-0 run to take a 13-10 lead.
A&M maintained the lead at 18-15 before Missouri rallied for four consecutive points and went on to build a 21-19 lead. A Mellinger kill and a Missouri attack error evened the score at 21-21. The teams began to trade points and the score was tied at 23 before Henning posted her match-high 21st kill to put the Tigers at match point. Katie O'Brien then followed with an off-speed shot over the A&M block to secure the win for the Tigers, who were playing there first home match after playing the last 13 contests on the road.
"We all know how difficult it is on the road in the Big 12," Corbelli said. "I don't feel like our team ever got in a rhythm. Our serve reception was giving us two options at best, but most of the time it was only one option. We just really struggled to get into the kind of rhythm we are used to, and that put tremendous pressure on the hitters. We consider (serve reception) to usually be a pretty strong part of our game, and that shook up a couple of players when it wasn't coming around."
Missouri (14-4, 1-1 Big 12) outhit A&M, .249 to .231 for the match, posting 62 kills to the Aggies' 57. Missouri also led in blocks, 10-7, while A&M led in digs (75-73) and aces (7-4).
Mellinger finished with a career-high 16 kills and also pitched in 11 digs for the second double-double of her career. Black had 13 kills and tied libero Megan Pendergast for team-high honors in digs with 19. Sawatzky also completed a double-double with 44 assists and 10 digs.
The Aggies return to Reed Arena next week for a two-match home stand starting with a Big 12 home opener against Baylor on Wednesday, Sept. 28. First serve against the Bears is at 6:30 p.m. It will be Fish Camp Night against the Bears, and all freshmen wearing their 2011 Fish Camp T-shirt will be admitted free.
"We know exactly what we have to continue to improve in," Corbelli said. "The team still has a lot of confidence and is excited to get home to Reed Arena next week and get back into the win column."
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