COLUMBIA, Mo. – LSU battled but ultimately fell 3-1 (19-25, 25-20, 25-27, 19-25) to Missouri on Sunday afternoon at the Hearnes Center.
Setter and former outside hitter Lauren Brooker eclipsed 1,000 career assists in the setback. Brooker turned in one of her best performances of the season, finishing with a season-high 40 assists to go along with three kills, two blocks, and an ace.
After dropping the opening frame, LSU (10-9, 3-5 SEC) responded with a strong second set. The turning point came in the tightly contested third set, where Missouri (12-7, 4-4 SEC) battled back to win, and ultimately capitalized on the momentum in the fourth to close the match.
For the second consecutive match, LSU applied pressure from the service line and finished with eight aces, marking the eighth time this season the Tigers have posted five or more aces in a match. Overall, LSU hit .210 with 52 kills and 48 assists, while adding 10 blocks and 43 digs defensively. Missouri countered with 51 kills on a .233 clip, nine aces, a stout 16 blocks, and 45 digs.
Outside hitter Jurnee Robinson continued her dominant stretch with a match-high 21 kills and 12 digs, registering her ninth double-double of the season and seventh featuring 20 or more kills. She also added three blocks and one ace.
Fellow outside hitter Nia Washington followed with 12 kills and one block, while right side Tireh Smith provided efficient scoring with eight kills on a .353 hitting percentage and two blocks.
Middle blocker Jessica Jones anchored the net defensively, totaling six blocks—including two solo stuffs—and added five kills. Jones was one of three Tigers to finish with two service aces, joined by libero Ella Hemmings and defensive specialist Aly Kirkhoff.
Set 1
Missouri scored the first four points of the match and led 8-1 when LSU called its first timeout. A 4-0 run sparked an overall 6-1 burst for the Fighting Tigers, pulling within two points at 11-9, but Mizzou regained its momentum and pushed its lead back to seven points at 17-10 when LSU used its final timeout. The Bayou Bengals scored the first two points out of the break and trimmed the deficit to four points at 18-14, but Missouri won the opening frame 25-19.
Set 2
An 18-6 run by LSU helped even the match. The Fighting Tigers scored four unanswered points, capped by an ace by Brooker, to take an 8-7 lead and went into the media timeout with a 15-11 advantage thanks to an overall 11-4 run. Missouri signaled for time trailing 18-12 and again down 21-13 as LSU continued its dominance. Mizzou responded, bringing the count to 22-16 when LSU called a timeout. Despite Missouri’s late push, LSU won the set 25-20. LSU hit .289 in the set on 15 kills, with 10 of those kills being split evenly between Robinson and Washington.
Set 3
Missouri scored the first point of the set, but LSU answered with six consecutive points and was ahead 15-7 at the media timeout behind six aces, featuring back-to-back aces from Jones and Kirkhoff, and another two aces from Hemmings. Missouri burned through both of its timeouts with LSU leading 22-12, but pulled off a massive rally, taking the set 27-25 and a 2-1 match lead.
Set 4
After 11 ties and six lead changes, LSU led 15-14 at the media timeout. Both clubs continued to trade blows until LSU called a timeout down 19-17 and its final timeout trailing 21-18. Missouri went on to win the set 25-19, closing the match on a 6-1 run.
Up Next
LSU returns to the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge for a four-match homestand beginning with matches against No. 10 Texas A&M and No. 2 Texas on Oct. 24 and Oct. 26, respectively.
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