The Missouri Tigers (8-11) lose both games in their series at Ole Miss (8-11). The Tigers could not carry the momentum of their upset win against the Auburn Tigers last week to secure a second win in SEC play. Once again, the Tigers were dominated by quick sets from the opposing team’s middles. Head coach Joshua Taylor continues to tinker with his lineups with little success as his team fails to start strong and close out games.
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | |
| Missouri | 17 | 29 | 21 |
| Ole Miss | 25 | 31 | 25 |
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | |
| Missouri | 15 | 25 | 25 | 22 | 14 |
| Ole Miss | 25 | 16 | 23 | 25 | 16 |
Joshua Taylor was outdueled by an Ole Miss team without a head coach as Kayla Banwarth was placed on administrative leave for undisclosed reasons. Assistant coach Bre Henry led the team in her absence, winning both games in three and five sets, respectively.
In game 1, Leandra Mangual-Duran’s amount of playing time was up in the air as she was returning from concussion protocol. Skylar Buckley played the first set of that game as the libero but the duty returned to Mangual-Duran in the final two sets in the losing effort. The Tigers offense struggled as Ole Miss was able to stonewall Missouri hitters with a plus six blocking differential.
Kaylee Cox’s spectacular effort in game 2 would not be enough to secure a Tigers victory. Cox finished Saturday with a whopping 34 kills, shattering her previous career best of 24, on a .394 hitting percentage. Sasha Ratliff would be incremental in sealing the five-set win for the Rebels with her 16 kill performance.
Joshua Taylor made a puzzling decision in set 1 of game 2 by opting for a 6-2 offense with Skylar Buckley as the second setter. Janet deMarrais subbed in for Riley Buckley in the front row. Taylor switched back to a 5-1 in the second set and did not return to the 6-2 offense.
The Tigers let Game 2 slip through their fingers, blowing a 21-16 lead in set 4 to allow an Ole Miss comeback. The Tigers have yet to win a set 5 in SEC play.
With these two losses to Ole Miss, the Tigers no longer have an opportunity to beat a program ranked lower than them by RPI rankings. Ole Miss and Alabama are the two teams ranked lower than Missouri and the Tigers lost all three matchups against them this season.
The Tigers return home to the Hearnes Center to face the Georgia Bulldogs in a two game series.