COLUMBIA, Mo. – The No. 25 ranked University of Missouri volleyball team (18-6, 9-3 SEC) dropped a hard-fought, five-set battle to No. 21 Florida (19-5, 10-3 SEC), 25-15, 21-25, 25-27, 25-22, 6-15) in front of a season-high 6,379 fans Friday night at the Hearnes Center.
Friday’s attendance is the fourth-highest Mizzou Volleyball crowd and the largest since Nov. 27, 2013 (vs. Arkansas).
Missouri is now third in the SEC standings at 9-3 behind Florida (19-5, 10-3 SEC) and Kentucky (16-7, 10-2 SEC)
Leading the Tigers Friday was graduate student Mychael Vernon with 17 kills along with seven digs and a block, ace and assist.
Also on the attack was senior Jordan Iliff logging 14 kills and nine digs in a near double-double. Iliff also added six blocks, two aces and an assist.
Janet deMarrais was the third Tiger in double-digits offensively with 10.
Colleen Finney notched a career-best matching seven blocks to go with nine kills (.438) and two digs. It was the second-straight seven-block match for Finney, a graduate middle blocker from Blythewood, South Carolina.
Junior Maya Sands led Missouri defensively with 23 digs, marking her third straight outing exceeding 16 digs. Sands also added four assists Friday.
Setter Marina Crownover dished out 47 assists, her ninth straight performance with at least 37 assists. The Austin, Texas, native, added six digs, two blocks and a kill.
FIRST SET (Mizzou 25-15, Mizzou leads 1-0)
After three early lead changes, Missouri used a five-point run to claim a 13-6 lead. deMarrais opened the run with a pair of kills before…
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