No. 25 Volleyball Tours the Southeast for Upcoming Conference Road Trip

Game #16 • Friday, Oct. 10 • 6 p.m. CT
No. 25 Mizzou (9-6, 1-3 SEC) vs. Florida (7-6, 2-2 SEC)
Exactech Arena • Gainesville, Fla.
SERIES HISTORY: FLA leads 14-5 • STREAK: L7
LAST GAME: L, 3-2 vs. Florida (Columbia, Mo. • Nov. 15, 2024)
LIVE STREAM: SEC+
OPPONENT WEB: floridagators.com

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Game #17 • Sunday, Oct. 12 • 2 p.m. CT
No. 25 Mizzou (9-6, 1-3 SEC) vs. Auburn (12-3, 3-1 SEC)
Neville Arena • Auburn, Ala.
SERIES HISTORY: MIZ leads 17-3 • STREAK: W4
LAST GAME: W, 3-0 vs. Auburn (Columbia, Mo. • Nov. 30, 2024)
LIVE STREAM: SEC+
OPPONENT WEB: auburntigers.com

No. 25-ranked Mizzou (9-6, 1-3 SEC) once again heads to the Sunshine State, as it begins a two-part road trip starting with Florida (7-6, 2-2 SEC) before heading to Alabama to take on Auburn (12-3, 3-1 SEC).

The Tigers will do battle with the Gators starting at 6 p.m. CT/7 p.m. ET on Friday in Gainesville, Fla., before Mizzou takes part in a Tiger-clash at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 12 in Auburn, Ala.

Both games will be streamed via SEC+.

SERIES HISTORY

• Florida leads the all-time series 14-5.
• The Tigers are 2-8 in Gainesville, Fla., with their last win coming Oct. 21, 2018. That victory was the last in the series for MU, as it had dropped the previous seven matches against the Gators.
• Mizzou first took on Florida on Dec. 2, 2011, at the NCAA Tournament in Cedar Falls, Iowa; the Gators won that match 3-1.
• MU leads the all-time series against Auburn 17-3.
• Mizzou has a four-match winning streak against the Tigers of Alabama; MU’s last loss to Auburn was Oct. 15, 2022.
• Mizzou is 8-2 all-time in Auburn, Ala., and first met Auburn on Sept. 6, 1996, and lost that initial matchup 3-0. The series resumed on Sept. 4, 2011, and what followed was a 12-match winning streak for the Tigers of Missouri.

PRESEASON HONORS

• Mizzou posted two players on the AVCA Preseason Player of the Year Watch List with senior transfer outside hitter Caylen Alexander and senior libero Maya Sands.
• Alexander joined the Tigers in 2025 after transferring from Hawai’i, where she was named an AVCA All-American after leading the NCAA in kills with 611, averaging 5.09 kills per set.
• Sands has headlined Mizzou’s defense for the past two years, as she heads into her senior season as the two-time reigning SEC Libero of the Year and AVCA All-American in

MILESTONE MANIA

• Libero Maya Sands recorded her 1,500-career dig against James Madison (Aug. 29).
• The now-senior recorded 535 digs during her junior year, following her 2023 campaign that saw her post 542 digs. Sands began her career with UNLV, where she compiled 412 digs in her freshman season before transferring to Mizzou.
• Sands recorded her 100th career service ace against Rhode Island (Sept. 11). She is currently 35 digs away from being tied for 5th all-time for digs in program history.
• Head coach Dawn Sullivan recorded her 150th career win against James Madison (Aug. 29)
• Sullivan is currently 158-66 (.705) in her career after recording a record of 109-38 (.741) in her five years with UNLV. With the Tigers, the third-year coach is 49-28 (.636) overall.
• Redshirt senior Tyrah Ariail recently recorded her 300th career block against Arkansas State (9/5/25).
• The redshirt senior recorded 283 in her four-year career with the USC Trojans.

SEC PRESEASON

• Mizzou was picked to finish fourth in the 2025 SEC Preseason Poll with 182 points.
• Kentucky, the defending conference champion, was picked to repeat in the SEC after earning 218 points.
• Senior Maya Sands was selected as the lone player from Mizzou on the Preseason All-SEC Team.

MAKING AN IMPACT

• The newest Mizzou athletes have already made a major impact as Caylen Alexander leads the team in kills (189), Tyrah Ariail is second on the team in blocks (54) and freshman Zoey Matias-Lopez is third on the team in digs (97).
• Freshman Zoey Matias-Lopez has ten or more digs in four games this season.

FIVE SET STANDARDS

• The Tigers are 1-2 on the season in five set matches but are 11-4 under head coach Dawn Sullivan.
• As a head coach Sullivan is 30-15 all-time in five set matches.
• In 2023 the Tigers went a perfect 5-0 in five-set matches.

SEC SHOWCASE

• Senior libero Maya Sands currently leads the SEC in digs with 260 and is first with 4.64 digs per set (23rd in the NCAA).
• Redshirt junior setter Marina Crownover is 10th in assists with 8.89 per set.
• Redshirt senior middle blocker Tyrah Ariail is first on the team and is fifth in the conference with a hitting percentage of .407, while senior Regan Haith is ninth in the SEC with a .373 hitting percentage.
• Senior Caylen Alexander is 10th in the conference with 4.42 points per set.

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A TIGER

• Redshirt junior Marina Crownover spent this past summer as an intern working for NASA.
• The setter is majoring in Physics at Mizzou and has a goal of becoming a pilot and flying jets such as F-22s.

CAYLEN ALEXANDER: AN UNDERDOG STORY

• Last season, Caylen Alexander led the NCAA in kills for Hawai’i (611).
• However, the story isn’t about her success as much as it is her journey to college, as she earned only two scholarships coming out of high school (Hawai’i and Chicago).

SETTING THE STANDARD

• Marina Crownover against TCU recorded 54 assists, and 21 digs – a new career high.
• Crownover, with this stat line, became the first Tiger since Lei Wang to post a 20-20 match with 20+ assists and 20+ digs (Sept. 17, 2008).
• The redshirt junior leads the team in double-doubles with six. Crownover has 17 during her time at Mizzou, as she had 11 in 2024.

CONFERENCE ON NOTICE

• Senior Libero Maya Sands earned the Tigers their first SEC Player of the Week Award. Sands was named Co-Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 23.
• The senior recorded 60 digs in 10 sets (6.00 digs per set) and was one dig shy of her career high with 29 against Valparaiso (Sept. 19).
• Sands has now earned six conference players of the week honors (three SEC; three Mountain West)
• She ranks first in the SEC in digs (227) and digs per set (4.73) and is 22^nd in the country for digs per set.

ROAD MAP

• The Tigers spent the first half of season on the road, as 11 of their 12 nonconference matchups were on the road or held at a neutral site.
• Mizzou is 5-0 in neutral matches this season.

FOLLOW THE TIGERS

• For all the latest information on Mizzou Volleyball, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Tigers on X, Instagram, and Facebook.