The Missouri Tigers are 8-3 this season and will begin SEC play on Friday with a match at LSU. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
The highly anticipated Southeastern Conference women’s volleyball season will begin Wednesday night, with a pair of matches that will be featured on the SEC Network.
No. 20 Tennessee will host Alabama at 6 p.m., and Georgia will head to Fayetteville to take on Arkansas at 8 p.m. But those two matchups are just the beginning of what many expect to be one of the most exciting SEC volleyball seasons ever.
Currently, four SEC teams are ranked in the Top 25, several others are among those receiving votes in the most recent poll, and ever team in the league will head into conference play with a winning record.
Preseason favorite Texas is ranked No. 8 in the country, while second choice Florida is 9-2 and ranked No. 15. Three other teams — Arkansas, Auburn, and Ole Miss — have already reached double-figures in wins, while South Carolina and Texas A&M stand with Florida with nine wins during the non-conference season.
Texas was the preseason pick to win the league title, but most believe just about any of the league’s 15 teams could win the conference title this year.
Mizzou setter Jordan Iliff leads the Tigers with 157 kills this season. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
Missouri will head into league play with an 8-3 record. The Tigers are also one of the hottest teams in the country.
Mizzou has won five games in a row, including all three at the Mizzou Invitational two weeks ago and both matches at the Lippy Invite in Nashville, where the Tigers beat host Lipscomb three sets to one and then won an exciting five-set thriller over Braggin’ Rights rival, Illinois.
The Tigers have been led by senior hitter Jordan Iliff, a 2023 All-SEC selection who was also named to this year’s preseason All-SEC team. Iliff has a team-high 157 kills, which is fourth-most in the SEC, and also has 25 service aces, which leads the SEC.
Grad student teammate Mychael Vernon, who transferred to Missouri from Oregon State this year, is right behind with 148 kills, which ranks sixth in the conference.
Setter Marina Crownover leads Mizzou with 252 assists this season. (Photo: Terrance Williams)
Other top performers for Mizzou this season have included sophomore setters Marina Crownover and Sierra Dudley. The duo often rotate in and out through most matches and the combination has been outstanding.
Crownover leads the team with 252 assists, while Dudley has 198. The Mizzou defense is led by junior libero Maya Sands, who ranks third in the SEC with 180 digs.
Mizzou will begin its SEC play with a match in Baton Rouge on Friday against LSU. That contest will be streamed live on SEC Network+.
That match will be the first in a three-game road trip for the Tigers, who will play at Texas A&M on Sunday, September 29, then at No. 9 Kentucky for a national tv contest on the SEC Network on October 6.
Missouri’s first home SEC contest will be on Friday, October 11, against Alabama. Last season, Mizzou went 18-13 overall and 9-9 in the SEC, and made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
2024 MISSOURI TIGERS WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 27, 2024 (Friday) | 7 pm | Away | LSU | Baton Rouge, La. |  |
| September 29, 2024 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Away | Texas A&M | College Station, Texas | |
| October 6, 2024 (Sunday) | 12 pm | Away | #9 Kentucky | Lexington, Ky. |  |
| October 9, 2024 (Wednesday) | 7 p.m. | Home | Southeast Missouri | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| October 11, 2024 (Friday) | 7 pm | Home | Alabama | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| October 13, 2024 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Home | #15 Tennessee | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| October 20, 2024 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Home | Mississippi State | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| October 25, 2024 (Friday) | 7 pm | Away | #19 Arkansas | Fayetteville, Ark. | |
| October 27, 2024 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Away | Oklahoma | Norman, Okla. | |
| November 1, 2024 (Friday) | 8 pm | Away | #8 Texas | Austin, Texas | |
| November 6, 2024 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Home | #25 Georgia | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| November 10, 2024 (Sunday) | 5:30 pm | Home | South Carolina | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| November 15, 2024 (Friday) | 7 pm | Home | #11 Florida | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| November 22, 2024 (Friday) | 6:30 pm | Away | Ole Miss | Oxford, Miss. | |
| November 24, 2024 (Sunday) | 2 pm | Away | Mississippi State | Starkville, Miss. | |
| November 27, 2024 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Home | #9 Kentucky | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |
| November 30, 2024 (Saturday) | 7:30 pm | Home | Auburn | Columbia, Mo. / Hearnes Center | |