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WelcometoMissouri

Welcome to Missouri ...

Table of ConTenTs

Welcome to Missouri __________________ 1Table of Contents ____________________________ 2Schedule ___________________________________ 3Rosters ____________________________________ 4Preview 2008 _______________________________ 6Tiger Camps _______________________________ 10

Show-Me Missouri ___________________ 11A Huge Tiger Following (Attendance Numbers) ___ 18

The Tigers __________________________ 47#1 Lei Wang ________________________________ 48#3 Caitlyn Vann _____________________________ 50#4 Amanda Hantouli ________________________ 52#6 Julianna Klein ____________________________ 54#11 Megan Wilson __________________________ 56#13 Weiwen Wang __________________________ 58#15 Catie Wilson ____________________________ 60#5 Lauren Nuckolls __________________________ 62#2 Brittney Brimmage _______________________ 63#10 Priscilla Armendariz ______________________ 63#12 Annie Lopez ____________________________ 64#14 Allison Johnson _________________________ 64Last Year’s Seniors ___________________________ 66

Coaches & Administration ____________ 69The Kreklows ______________________________ 70Deng Yang, Chen Feng _______________________ 76Support Staff ______________________________ 77Mike Alden, Director of Athletics _______________ 78Missouri Administration ______________________ 79Volleyball Support __________________________ 82

Opponents _________________________ 83Early-Season Tournaments ____________________ 84Big 12 Opponents ___________________________ 87SID Directory _______________________________ 92All-Time Series Records ______________________ 93Opponent Series Log ________________________ 94

2007 Review ________________________ 99Recap 2007 _______________________________ 100Results ___________________________________ 103Statistical Recap ___________________________ 104Big 12 Conference Recap ____________________ 108National Scene Recap _______________________ 110NCAA Tournament Recap____________________ 111

Team History & Record Book _________ 113Tiger Volleyball History _____________________ 114Year-by-Year Record ________________________ 114Coaching Records __________________________ 114All-American Plaza _________________________ 114Awards & Honors __________________________ 115NCAA Tournament Teams ___________________ 116NCAA Tournament Records __________________ 124Match Records ____________________________ 126Season Records____________________________ 130Career Records ____________________________ 134Misc. Mizzou Records _______________________ 136Year-by-Year Results ________________________ 138All-Time Roster ____________________________ 144

Fan Guide _________________________ 147A Fan’s Guide to Volleyball ___________________ 148

Missouri Volleyball 2008

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The 2008 Missouri volleyball season yearbook is a production of the University of Missouri Athletic Media Relations office. The yearbook also serves as the team’s media and recruiting guide.

This guide was written, designed, and edited by Media Relations Assistant Tom Lewis. Editorial and production assistance provided by the Missouri volleyball coaching staff along with staff and student assistants of the Missouri Media Relations office.

The covers were designed by Big Fish Creative, a Columbia, Mo.,

based company. Special thanks go to Brendon Steenbergen for his efforts on

the project.Guide printed by MU Printing Services.

Special thanks to Marcia Doll, Mona Murray, and Rick Reed for the their

help on this project.

General Information _______________Location ______Columbia, Mo. (84,531)Founded _____________________1839Enrollment _________________ 28.477Nickname ___________________TigersColors _____________ Old Gold & BlackAffiliation ___________NCAA Division IConference _________________ Big 12Arena _________ Hearnes Center (1972)Capacity ___________________ 13,611UM President ___________ Gary ForseeMU Chancellor ____ Dr. Brady J. DeatonDirector of Athletics ____ Michael AldenSr. Assoc. AD/SWA_____ Sarah Reesman

Coaching Staff ____________________Head Coach _________ Wayne Kreklow Alma Mater ____________ Drake, 1980 Record at Mizzou ______ 60-31, 4th Year Kreklows at Mizzou ___ 169-77, 8th Year Overall Record _______ 327-60, 9th YearDir. Of Volleyball _______Susan Kreklow Alma Mater ______ Missouri State, 1984Assistant Coach __________Deng YengAssistant Coach __________Chen FengVolleyball Ops. Coord. ___Mike JacksonVolleyball Office ______ (573) 882-0726Media Relations __________ Tom LewisAthletic Trainer _________Brooke MillerAcademic Advisor ______ Dr. Joe ScoginStrength & Conditioning _ Andrew PaulMarketing ___________Haleigh Harrold

Team Information _________________2007 Record _________________ 17-132007 Big 12 Record _____10-10, tied 6th2007 Postseason ____ NCAA First Round2007 Final AVCA Rank _____not rankedStarters Returning/Lost _______ 5/1 + LLetterwinners Returning/Lost _____ 7/4Newcomers ______________________4

Media Relations ___________________Volleyball Contact ________ Tom Lewis Office Phone ________ (573) 884-9486 Cell Phone _________ (573) 424-9447 E-mail _______LewisTV@missouri.eduFax _________________ (573) 882-4720Athletics Web Site ______ mutigers.comMailing Address __ 260 Hearnes Center_______________________ PO Box 677_______________ Columbia, MO 65205

Thanks to the following for their photography efforts:

Jonathan brownfield, Joel Kowsky,Charles ludeckeMissouri Media Relations

l.G. PattersonRecess, Inc.

stephen brashearPictures from Washington

QuiCK faCTs 2008 sChedule

CrediTs PhoToGraPhy

The Covers

PrinTinG

Day Date Opponent (TV) Time (CT) Location BYU Molten Classic, hosted by BYU Fri. Aug. 29 _____Tulane _______________ 5:30pm ____________ Provo, UtahSat. Aug. 30 _____Utah State _____________ 1:00pm ____________ Provo, UtahSat. Aug. 30 _____at BYU _______________ 8:30pm ____________ Provo, Utah

Spring Hill Suites at Arundel Mills Invitational, hosted by MarylandFri. Sep. 5 ______at Maryland ____________ 6:00pm ____________ College Park, Md.Sat. Sep. 6 ______Kentucky ______________ 11:00am____________ College Park, Md.Sat. Sep. 6 ______St. John’s ______________ 4:30pm ____________ College Park, Md.

AT&T Invitational, hosted by NevadaFri. Sep. 12 _____at Nevada _____________ 9:00pm ____________ Reno, Nev.Sat. Sep. 13 _____Pepperdine ____________ Noon ______________ Reno, Nev.Sat. Sep. 13 _____UC-Davis ______________ 7:00pm ____________ Reno, Nev.

Wed. Sep. 17 _____at Oklahoma* ___________ 7:00pm ____________ Norman, Okla.Sun. Sep. 21 _____BAYLOR* ______________ 1:00pm ____________ Hearnes CenterWed. Sep. 24 _____at Texas Tech* ___________ 7:00pm ____________ Lubbock, TexasSat. Sep. 27 _____SIU-EDWARDSVILLE _______ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes CenterWed. Oct. 1 ______IOWA STATE* ___________ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes CenterSat. Oct. 4 ______at Texas A&M* ___________ 6:30pm ____________ College Station, TexasWed. Oct. 8 ______at Kansas State* _________ 7:00pm ____________ Manhattan, Kan.Sun. Oct. 12 _____NEBRASKA* ____________ 1:00pm ____________ Hearnes CenterWed. Oct. 15 _____KANSAS* ______________ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes CenterFri. Oct. 17 _____at Texas* ______________ 6:30pm ____________ Austin, TexasWed. Oct. 22 _____COLORADO* ____________ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes CenterSat. Oct. 25 _____at Iowa State* ___________ TBA-FB ____________ Ames, IowaWed. Oct. 29 _____at Kansas* _____________ 7:00pm ____________ Lawrence, Kan.Sat. Nov. 1 ______TEXAS TECH*____________ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes CenterSun. Nov. 9 ______OKLAHOMA* ____________ 1:00pm ____________ Hearnes CenterWed. Nov. 12 _____at Nebraska* ___________ 6:30pm ____________ Lincoln, Neb.Sat. Nov. 15 _____at Colorado* ____________ TBA-FB ____________ Boulder, Colo.Wed. Nov. 19 _____KANSAS STATE* __________ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes CenterSat. Nov. 22 _____at Baylor* _____________ 5:00pm ____________ Waco, TexasWed. Nov. 26 _____TEXAS* _______________ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes CenterFri. Nov. 28 _____TEXAS A&M* ___________ 6:30pm ____________ Hearnes Center Dec. 4-7 ____NCAA First/Second Rounds _____________________ Campus Sites, TBA Dec. 11-14 ___NCAA Regionals __________ Austin, Texas; Ft. Collins, Colo.; Seattle, Wash.; State College, Pa. Dec. 18-20 ___NCAA Championship _________________________ Omaha, Neb.

* Big 12 Match, TBA-FB: match time TBA based on a football contest in the same locationHome matches in CAPS, all times central, and subject to change. Check mutigers.com for updates and latest televison listings.

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Welcome to Missouri ...

No. Player ___________Pos. Ht. Class __________ Hometown (High School) 1 Lei Wang ____________ S 5-11 Jr.-RS _____ Shanghai, China (Shanghai Sports School)2 Brittney Brimmage ___ MB/OH 6-3 Fr. ______________East St. Louis, Ill. (East St. Louis)3 Caitlyn Vann __________DS 5-6 So. ____________________ Muncie, Ind. (Burris)4 Amanda Hantouli _____ MB 6-0 Jr.-RS ______________ Omaha, Neb. (Omaha Burke)5 Lauren Nuckolls ______ OPP 5-11 Jr. _ Overland Park, Kan. (Blue Valley West/Central Mo.)6 Julianna Klein _______ OH 5-11 So.-RS __________________ Keota, Iowa (Keota)10 Priscilla Armendariz _____DS 5-3 Fr. _________ Blue Springs, Mo. (Blue Springs South)11 Megan Wilson _______ Util 6-1 Jr.-RS ____________ Lincoln, Neb. (Lincoln Christian)12 Annie Lopez __________DS 5-4 Fr. ___________ St. Louis, Mo. (St. Joseph’s Academy)13 Weiwen Wang _______ MB 5-11 So. _____Nanjing, China (Jiangsu Education Institute)14 Allison Johnson ______ MB/OH 6-3 Fr. __________________ Sycamore, Ill. (Sycamore)15 Catie Wilson ________ MB/OPP 6-1 So. ____________________ Omaha, Neb. (Gross)

numeriCal

alPhabeTiCalNo. Player ___________Pos. Ht. Class __________ Hometown (High School)10 Priscilla Armendariz _____DS 5-3 Fr. _________ Blue Springs, Mo. (Blue Springs South)2 Brittney Brimmage ___ MB/OH 6-3 Fr. ______________East St. Louis, Ill. (East St. Louis)4 Amanda Hantouli _____ MB 6-0 Jr.-RS ______________ Omaha, Neb. (Omaha Burke)14 Allison Johnson ______ MB/OH 6-3 Fr. __________________ Sycamore, Ill. (Sycamore)6 Julianna Klein _______ OH 5-11 So.-RS __________________ Keota, Iowa (Keota)12 Annie Lopez __________DS 5-4 Fr. ___________ St. Louis, Mo. (St. Joseph’s Academy)5 Lauren Nuckolls ______ OPP 5-11 Jr. _ Overland Park, Kan. (Blue Valley West/Central Mo.)3 Caitlyn Vann __________DS 5-6 So. ____________________ Muncie, Ind. (Burris)1 Lei Wang ____________ S 5-11 Jr.-RS _____ Shanghai, China (Shanghai Sports School)13 Weiwen Wang _______ MB 5-11 So. _____Nanjing, China (Jiangsu Education Institute)15 Catie Wilson ________ MB/OPP 6-0 So. ____________________ Omaha, Neb. (Gross)11 Megan Wilson _______ Util 6-1 Jr.-RS ____________ Lincoln, Neb. (Lincoln Christian)

head Coach: Wayne Kreklow (Drake, 1980)director of volleyball: Susan Kreklow (Missouri State, 1984)assistant Coaches: Deng Yang, Chen Feng

PronounCiaTion Guide

breaKdownBy Class

Seniors (0)

Juniors (4)Amanda Hantouli, MB (RS)Lauren Nuckolls, OPPLei Wang, S (RS)Megan Wilson, OPP/S (RS)

Sophomores (4)Julianna Klein, OH (RS)Caitlyn Vann, L/DSWeiwen Wang, OPP/MBCatie Wilson, MB

Freshmen (4)Priscilla Armendariz, DSBrittany Brimmage, MBAllison Johnson, MBAnnie Lopez, DS

By state/Country Nebraska (3)Amanda Hantouli, LincolnCatie Wilson, OmahaMegan Wilson, Lincoln

Missouri (2)Priscilla Armendariz, Blue SpringsAnnie Lopez, St. Louis

China (2)Lei Wang, ShanghaiWeiwan Wang, Nanjing

Illinois (2)Brittany Brimmage, East St. LouisAllison Johnson, Sycamore

Iowa (1)Julianna Klein, Keota

Indiana (1)Caitlyn Vann, Muncie

Kansas (1)Lauren Nuckolls, Overland Park

Priscilla ARMENDARIZ _________________ are-men-DARE-asAmanda HANTOULI _______________________hand-tool-leeJULIANNA Klein ________________________ jewel-ee-on-ahLEI WANG __________________________________LAY wongWEIWEN WANG _______________________ way-WHEN wongCATIE Wilson _________________________________ KAY-tee

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Lei WangS / 5-11 / RS Jr.

Shanghai, China

Brittney BrimmageMB / 6-3 / Fr.

East St. Louis, Ill.

Julianna KleinOH / 6-0 / RS So.

Keota, Iowa

1 2Caitlyn Vann

DS / 5-6 / So.Muncie, Ind.

3Amanda Hantouli

MB / 6-0 / RS Jr.Omaha, Neb.

4

Lauren NuckollsDS / 5-11 / Jr.

Overland Park, Kan.

5 6Priscilla Armendariz

DS / 5-3 / Fr.Blue Springs, Mo.

10Megan WilsonOPP/MB / 6-1 / RS Jr.

Lincoln, Neb.

11

Annie LopezDS / 5-4 / Fr.St. Louis, Mo.

Weiwen WangRS/MB / 5-11 / So.

Nanjing, China

Allison JohnsonMB / 6-3 / Fr.Sycamore, Ill.

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Wayne KreklowHead Coach4th Season

Deng YangAssistant Coach

9th Season

Chen FengAssistant Coach

9th Season

Catie WilsonMB / 6-1/ So.Omaha, Neb.

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Susan KreklowDirector of Volleyball

9th Season

Welcome to Missouri ...

biG 12 Preseason awardsCoaChes’ Preseason Poll

Rk Team ___________ Pts1. Texas (10) ________ 1002. Nebraska _________ 883. Kansas State (1) ____ 844. Texas A&M ________ 715. missouri ________ 626. Iowa State _________ 557. Colorado __________ 388. Baylor ____________ 37 Oklahoma _________ 3710. Kansas ___________ 2311. Texas Tech ________ 10

Preseason Players of the Year: Jordan Larson, Nebraska, OH, Sr. , 6-2, Hooper, Neb./Logan ViewJuliann Faucette, Texas, OH, So., 6-2, San Diego, Calif./Westview

Preseason Newcomer of the Year: Sydney Anderson, Nebraska, So., S, 6-0, Salt Lake City, Utah/Utah

Preseason Freshman of the Year:Rachael Adams, Texas, MB, Fr., 6-2, Cincinnati, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame

Preseason all-Big 12Taylor Barnes, Baylor ________S _ Jr.

Anna Breyfogle, Baylor _____ MB _ Jr.

Kaylee Manns, Iowa State _____S _ Jr.

Natalie Uhart, Kansas ______ MB _ Sr.

Megan Farr, Kansas State ____ MB _ Sr.

Rita Liliom, Kansas State ____ OH _ Sr.

Nataly Korobkova, Kansas State OH _ Sr.

Weiwen Wang, Missouri ___ MB _ So.

Kori Cooper, Nebraska ______ MB _ Jr.

Jordan Larson, Nebraska ____ OH _ Sr.

Francie Ekwerekwu, Oklahoma MB _ So.

Ashley Engle, Texas ________S/RS _ Jr.

Juliann Faucette, Texas _____ OH _ So.

Destinee Hooker, Texas _____ OH _ Jr.

Lauren Paolini, Texas _______ MB _ Sr.

Sarah Ammerman, Texas A&M _ OH _ Jr.

Mary Batis, Texas A&M _____ OH _ Jr.

What have we learned so far in 2008? If the Beijing Olym-pics taught us anything, it’s that the number eight is a lucky number for the Chinese and in its culture, all

the more evident with its beginning of the Olympic Opening Ceremony on 8-8-08 at 8:08:08 p.m.

The Missouri volleyball team in the 2008 season also wishes to employ the luck of the number EIGHT. The Tigers have been to EIGHT-consecutive NCAA Tournaments – every one of them in the decade, with Nebraska being the only other team in the Big 12 to match. For as young as the Tigers seemed last season, they return EIGHT to the team this season, five of which started in more than 20 matches last year. And, get used to the faces – there are zero seniors in 2008, meaning it will be a carbon-copy roster in 2009.

“I look at us on paper and what we have returning, and that makes me feel positive about what we are able to do this year,” said Head Coach Wayne Kreklow. “We’ve got a core group – we’ve got a returning setter, we’ve got a lot of returners from last year’s team back.”

Not included in the list of “technical starters” from last season is junior OH Julianna Klein (Keota, Iowa). Klein started last season on a roll, recording kill-dig double-doubles in five of her seven matches played, averaging a then-team high 4.44 kills and 2.85 digs per set, and tabulating a career-high 26 kills in the season opener at Mississippi. But, in the September 7 match versus Houston, Klein went down in the third set, tearing the ACL in her left knee – her season would be over. However, Klein has bounced back, gone through rehab, and is ready to pick up where she left off.

“Jules has had a great spring in coming back from her injury,” said Kreklow. “She’s worked really hard in rehab and has con-sistently been ahead of all of her rehab goals, so she’s really put in the time and effort in the training room to come back. I thought by the end of the spring she was close to where she was in the fall, so she’s made a lot of progress off the court. She’s obviously very anxious to get back out on the floor again and she’s done a good job working on the little things, like her passing game. She’s always been a big power hitter, and she’s worked hard on the things that are going to be necessary for her to get where she wants to go if she wants to be all-confer-ence, be an All-American player, and help us get back to the tournament again.”

With the renewed optimism surrounding the returning veter-ans, including Klein’s resurgence, the team will still have to deal with the loss to graduation of OH Na Yang and L Tatum Ailes. Yang set a Mizzou record in single-season kills in 2007, placing fifth in the Big 12 with 4.54 kills per set during league play. Ailes is arguably the best defensive player to have worn a Mizzou uniform. Having been the Tigers’ libero for four years, Ailes was a passing and digging dynamo, nearly impenetrable on occa-sion. Ailes was the Big 12 Libero of the Year as a sophomore and finished her career second in the Big 12 in digs.

“I think the big question for us as a team will be defensively and passing,” said Kreklow. “Obviously with Tatum Ailes out of the picture, somebody has got to step in and kind of take over that position, and that’s what we are going through in the preseason, give everyone a shot and see what everyone can do. So, we’ve got to find that first pass and that role of libero is critical.”

The understudy to Ailes in 2007 was now-sophomore Caitlyn Vann (Muncie, Ind.). Vann was impressive in her freshman cam-

paign as the team’s primary defensive specialist, tallying 2.72 digs per set in half-rotation play. Vann also showed a tough serving style, allowing the Tigers to go on multiple runs with her behind the stripe.

“Vann is kind of the Energizer bunny for our team,” said Krek-low. “She provides a lot of the spark, a lot of the fire for our team – she’s a great competitor. I thought she had a great freshman year last year as an understudy for Tate, and she’s been working very hard during the off season to put herself in that position to take over that libero spot. She’s got big shoes to fill, but she’s one of the hardest working kids we’ve got in the program, and I think she’s a real competitor and will do what she has to do to try to be that libero, to be that person that will play that posi-tion.”

The Tigers will have two very talented freshmen vying for play-ing time in the back row with Priscilla Armendariz and Annie Lopez taking center stage. Armendariz (Blue Springs, Mo.) has already earned a nickname – “Pip”. On her high school team, she was a setter, on her national-caliber club team, she was the libero. “Pip is going to be somebody we look to contribute right away, said Kreklow. “Pip came out of a very good club and was a set-ter in high school and a libero for her club team. Her 18-and-under team finished fifth, I believe, at the U.S. junior national tournament last summer. She’s a great little defensive player. She’s got good quickness; she reads well and has a great feel. She’s very vocal and upbeat. She’s somebody we anticipate we play quite a bit in her freshman year.”

Annie Lopez (St. Louis, Mo.) has made quite an impression during the early days of practice and will also see her share of playing time in 2008. Lopez was a two-time All-State selection at her high school, St. Joseph’s Academy, helping her team to

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three-consecutive MSHSAA Class 4 runner-up finishes. Lo-pez’s club team was a national champion in 2005, as Lopez was part of several national-caliber club teams.

“Annie also came out of a great club program. Annie is another one that has a great natural feel for the game. She reads well, she’s extremely quick. She has very quick feet – moves well. She’s got a great platform, and is a very competitor – she’s not as vocal yet, but that’s often typical for freshman. She’s a great first passer and is just a phenomenal little defensive player. She’s another one we anticipate seeing a lot of playing time this year as a freshman.”

Along with Vann, another Mizzou freshman who made a huge impact in 2007 was MB Weiwen Wang (Nanjing, China). Wang was named the 2008 Preseason All-Big 12 team, and for good reason. In her role, Wang led the Tiger team last year in service aces (34), and was second on the team in kills per set (2.96), blocks per set (0.89), hitting percentage (.256), and points per set (3.78). In addition, “Wendy” was named Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week on October 8 after posting school records with 19 errorless kills and 13 total blocks in the October 3 match at Colorado. She repeated the 19 errorless kills when the Buffaloes came to Columbia on November 24.

“I was really pleased with Wendy as a freshman,” said Krek-low. “Wendy is one of those players, that, when you look at your typical Big 12 players, she’s not the big imposing middle blockers that you see so often, but she’s got such a quick arm and she’s such a smart hitter that she proved over the course of last season that she’s very difficult to defend.”

Now in her fourth year in the Mizzou system, S Lei Wang (Shanghai, China) has a lot to look forward to in her redshirt-junior campaign. Having already guided the Mizzou ship in the last two years as setter, Wang has seemingly found her stride improve with each match experience. Oddly enough, her experience last year had to be tweaked a notch because of the injury to Klein. On occasion, Kreklow would utilize the 6-2 system, making Wang’s play in the front row strictly at the net as a right-side hitter. Although her overall assist-per-set average was down because of the variety of positions that she had to play, Wang still recorded two triple-doubles including a 10 kill, 49 assist, and 15 dig effort versus No. 25 Oklahoma on September 29.

“I thought she had a great second half of last season,” said Kreklow. “She really came on during the month of November and into tournament time and did a real excellent job. What we’ve worked on during the spring has been her individual defense and blocking. I think she’s got a good grasp of what is required of her as a setter and I look for that to improve.”

Wang has the benefit of playing for three years with Amanda Hantouli and Megan Wilson, all three of which redshirted to-gether in 2005, allowing for an all-in-one learning and sharing experience.

Hantouli, going into her junior year as one of the Tigers’ mid-dle blockers, had a breakout season in 2007, challenging the competition with her quick arm and presence at the net. Han-touli had 11 matches last season with 10-or-more-kills, includ-ing a five-match streak of 10+ kills that included a drubbing of Texas Tech on November 10 where she put down a career-high 16 kills on zero errors and only 24 attacks. Hantouli led the team with 1.03 blocks per set in 2007 and is now third all-time in Mizzou history in the category (0.92).

“Amanda really had a great second half of the season last year,” said Kreklow. “Amanda was somebody that, us as coaches,

was very impressed by the improvement that she made and she had a great spring. For Amanda, it’s always been the men-tal side of the game more than anything. She’s got great lat-eral quickness, a fast arm, and has always been competitive. I think what held her back a little bit was her tendency to make unforced errors and sometimes lets that affect her mentally. I thought the last half of the season last year, she made tre-mendous strides – hitting percentage went way up, unforced errors went way down, and she started to play like a veteran. If she can continue that again this season, I look for her to have a very good year and she’ll be a main part of what we do.”

Megan Wilson had a multi-dimensional role in 2007, having to switch from a middle blocking, right side hitter to a left-side, outside-hitting type when Klein stepped down early in the season. As a result, Wilson had 18 matches in which she scored on 10-or-more-kills, including a career-high 18 kill per-formance over No. 25 Oklahoma on September 29. At Colo-rado on October 3, Wilson tallied 13 kills and 10 total blocks to score her first double-double. Wilson finished the season

avCa CoaChes’ ToP 25 Preseason PollSponsored by: USA Today and CSTVConducted by: American Volleyball Coaches’ Association

Rk School (First Pl. Votes) __ Pts ______‘07 Rec ____ ‘07 Fnl Rk 1 Penn State (59) _______ 1498 _____34-2 ___________ 12 Stanford ___________ 1431 _____32-3 ___________ 23 Texas _____________ 1360 _____27-4 ___________ 64 Southern California ____ 1229 _____29-5 ___________ 35 California __________ 1214 _____26-8 ___________ 46 UCLA _____________ 1188 _____23-11 __________ 77 Nebraska (1) ________ 1161 _____30-2 ___________ 58 Florida ____________ 1025 _____29-3 ___________ 89 Washington _________ 944 ______27-4 ___________1010 Cal Poly ___________ 849 ______23-8 ___________1111 Oregon ____________ 797 ______22-11 __________ 912 Hawai’i ____________ 781 ______27-6 ___________1813 Wisconsin __________ 765 ______26-5 ___________1414 Kansas State _________ 665 ______23-9 ___________1615 Middle Tennessee _____ 479 ______35-3 ___________1516 Minnesota __________ 446 ______18-13 _________ NR17 Colorado State _______ 363 ______23-8 __________ NR18 Iowa State __________ 328 ______19-14 __________1719 Clemson ___________ 303 ______29-4 ___________2220 BYU ______________ 292 ______24-8 ___________1221 LSU ______________ 276 ______25-8 __________ NR22 San Diego __________ 271 ______21-8 ___________2523 New Mexico State _____ 229 ______26-6 ___________2124 Long Beach State ______ 220 ______26-7 ___________2325 Purdue ____________ 190 ______19-14 _________ NROthers Receiving Votes: St. John’s 180; Michigan 177; Pepperdine 113; Dayton 98; Michigan State 80; Louisville 66; Santa Clara 65; Ohio 62; Texas A&M 55; Utah 45; Illinois 44; Missouri 42; Tulane 38; Arizona 31; Duke 18; Kentucky 16; Oklahoma 15; Wichita State 14; Georgia Tech 8; Western Kentucky 6.

Missouri’s 2008 opponents listed in itatlics

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whaT’s reTurninGStat __ Returning _ ’07 Total _ PercentageKills ____ 1,253 _____ 1,792 _______ 69.92%Assists __ 1,276 _____ 1,621 _______ 78.72%Aces _____ 105 _______134 _______ 78.36%Digs _____ 956 ______ 1,973 _______ 48.45%Blocks ___ 467 _______541 _______ 86.32%

Welcome to Missouri ...

as the third on the team in points per set (3.21) and kills per set (2.66).

“With Megan, we’ve been very pleased with the progress that she’s made,” continued Kreklow. “Again, it was the second half of the season last year things started to fall into place for her. I thought she started to play with a lot more maturity, and a lot more confidence. Megan has been that one player in the program over the past eight years that has probably played more positions than anyone we’ve had. She’s very versatile. When Jules went down with the ACL, we had to move Megan from the right side and put her to the left. So early in the sea-son, she’s playing a position that she’s never played before. By the time we got to the second half of the Big 12 season, she started to get more comfortable over there and developed into a pretty consistent attacker. I felt like the big bonus in put-ting her over there on the left side was that her block on the left side was probably more of a factor to the team’s success than her hitting. She’s worked very hard all spring to improve on her attacking. I think over the summer, hard work in the weight room has paid off. She’s in great shape, she’s jumping well and I think she’s playing with a lot of confidence. I look for her to have a great year attacking on the left side to go with her block.”

Catie Wilson (Omaha, Neb.) is back for her sophomore cam-paign, most-likely playing as a right-side, middle hitting type in the 2008 season. Wilson has six matches with five-or-more blocks and started in 22 contests for the team in 2007.

“Catie I thought last year as freshman, did a good job of com-ing in during a tough situation and playing well on the right side for us,” said Kreklow. “It’s not an easy position to play, you know there’s a lot more to playing right side than just putting

up a block – you’ve got to handle the ball, you’ve got to help defensively. I think Catie is worked hard during the offsea-son and worked hard during the summertime to develop her strength and athletic ability a little bit and has become a little bit more quicker and faster over there. Catie is also another intelligent player. While she may not have the jumping ability and quickness in that position, I think she’s done a very good job in using her knowledge of the game to put herself in posi-tion to make plays when she needs them.”

Kreklow knows he has a good number of veterans to fill a vast majority of the lineup, but one spot seemingly remains up for grabs, the second right-side hitting position.

“As a team, we’ve got two returning middles, we’ve got Megan and Jules back on the left side, we’ve got Catie back on the right side, Lei setting. I think the other big question mark is who will be counted on for that other right-side swing,” said Kreklow. “I think we are trying to bring the freshmen up to date as quick as we can, trying to make them contributors as quick as we can. It will be interesting to see how all of that unfolds.”

Junior Lauren Nuckolls (Overland Park, Kan.) transferred from the University of Central Missouri before last season and has looked to fully recover from an ACL injury suffered prior to her trip to Mizzou.

“Lauren had a great spring,” said Kreklow. “Lauren has not had a lot of playing time and has not seen the court too much, but Lauren’s main contribution to us so far has been on a daily basis in practice and in the weight room – just being a great team player. She’s got a very good attitude, she works hard. I think she raises the commitment level of the team when she’s around. I think she sets a very good example, and when you

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have players like that in the program, I think they may not get on the floor as much as they’d like, but there still very valuable people to have.”

Freshmen Brittany Brimmage (East St. Louis, Ill) and Allison Johnson (Sycamore, Ill.) will be two to watch as well, as their experience will seemingly grow day-to-day. With Brimmage at 6-3 and Johnson at 6-4, their heights will garner some atten-tion.

“Brittany is an interesting story,” said Kreklow. “That was some-body we heard about late, going into her senior year, actually. We just got a head’s up from somebody we knew that saw her high school team play and said ‘Look, you’ve got to go see this girl play’. We went to go see her play and we were incredibly impressed by her athleticism. Her skill level and experience in the game of volleyball is relatively low, because she never played club or had the benefit to play club and getting a high-er level of experience and training. But, she’s got a very good grasp of basic skills and I think, athletically, she’s one of the best pure athletes we’ve ever had in the program, and we’ve had some good ones, so that’s saying a lot. She jumps out of the gym, she’s got good size, she’s got quickness and agility, she’s got a great personality and attitude and I think Brittany is

going to be somebody that before her career at MU is over, she has the athletic ability to play at an All-American level. We look for her to contribute very early in her college career.”

Brimmage was an all-conference performer for her high school in volleyball, but found most of her successes as a jumper on the school’s track & field team. This spring, Brimmage earned all-state honors in the long jump, placing sixth at the IHSA Championships.

Johnson was a two-time captain and three-time all-confer-ence selection for her high school in Sycamore, Ill., honored also with a mention by prepvolleyball.com as one of its Top-100 Senior Aces. Her club team, Club Fusion, also had some national prominence.

“Allison is somebody that we think has the potential to de-velop into a very good front row player. Obviously, she’s got great height. I think what intrigued us about Allison is that her lateral movement for someone who is so young and has that kind of height – I think she has the potential to develop into a very good volleyball player here at Mizzou. Strength is an issue for Allison, but I think once she gets the benefit of a strength program and the consistency of training that she’s going to make big strides. I think what you look for in a player like Al-lison, is, one, do they have the movement skills, even though they don’t have the strength to dominate matches.”

The team begins the season with a very interesting schedule, as the first home match will not be but over four weeks from the start of the season when the Tigers welcome the Baylor Bears on September 21. The first three weekends, Mizzou will attend tournaments in Utah, Maryland, and Nevada, in that order, before starting the Big 12 season on the road, on the following Wednesday, September 17 in Norman, Okla.

“It will be a challenging non-conference schedule,” said Krek-low. “Being on the road that much is going to be a challenge as well. I think the only way you get better is to challenge yourself and challenge the team.”

In the non-conference tournament action, the Tigers will face BYU and St. John’s, two NCAA-Tournament teams from 2007 that finished in the top 15 nationally.

“Over the years you take a look at different scheduling philoso-phies, and I think it helps going out and playing people,” Krek-low said. “You do have to keep everyone on board with the no-tion that the purpose of doing that is not to see if we can be in first place after the first weekend, or the second weekend, but rather, use that as preparation tools for the conference season and November.”

Mizzou was picked to finish fifth in the league by the Big 12 Coaches.

“You know, the conference is once again going to be strong,” said Kreklow. “I think the last four or five last years, the Big 12, top-to-bottom has gotten stronger. I think on a night-in-night-out basis every time you go out to play, you are good enough to beat anybody, and anybody you play is good enough to beat you. So, we are going to put a lot of emphasis on being prepared and I think playing with confidence, and I do think having some of these people back again after going through the season last year will be helpful. I think they know what to expect, and I think they know what it takes to be successful, and they also know, I think, how to not let a tough conference like the Big 12 beat you up – it’s very easy for that to happen because every Wednesday and Saturday you are playing some of the best teams in the country.”

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mutigers.com

Welcome to Missouri ...

Each summer, hundreds of young ladies come to Columbia to take part in the Mizzou Volleyball Camps. In 2007, over 900 campers attended the Mizzou Volleyball Camps.

Five separate camps are offered by the Tigers. A team camp of-fers competitive team-play and on-court coaching sessions for both varsity and junior varsity levels.

Two All-Skills Camps are offered which cover skills for all levels on all facets of the game.

The Specialty Camp focuses on advanced skill development by position and is a great camp for the intermediate to advanced player.

The Elite Camp is geared toward the more experienced, high school aged, college-bound athlete and is a comprehensive camp that covers techniques, strength and conditioning, nutri-tion and much more.

Camp information, brochures and registration information can be found on the official website of Mizzou Athletics, mutigers.com, then click on Volleyball and select camps.

For updated 2009 Missouri Volleyball Camp information, visit mutigers.com

TigEr Volleyball Camps

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