Match preview: Tiger Invitational

The Tigers kick off their 2009 season with a three-game tournament this weekend right here in Columbia at the Hearnes Center. Coming to town will be Brigham Young, Ole Miss, and Texas State, so this tournament won’t be an early-season cakewalk. However, with all six starters from 2008 returning and an exciting group of newcomers in the mix, Mizzou should be up to the challenge this weekend.

A quick rundown of the Tigers’ competition:

Aug. 28 vs. Texas State, 6:30 pm

Although they don’t hail from a traditional power conference, Texas State has some firepower. The Bobcats had 1,722 kills and a .247 hitting percentage in 37 games last year, helping them go 24-13 with a 14-2 conference record.

Outside hitter Jessica Weynand led the charge, racking up 372 kills in ’08. She’ll be accompanied by Melinda Cave (261 kills last year) and AJ Watlington (174 kills) to lead the scoring charge.

Weynand looks like the player to watch this weekend, as she also led Texas State in digs (365) and was tied for second on the team in service aces (34).

Fun facts: Notable Texas State alumni include President Lyndon B. Johnson, country singer George Strait, and Chicago White Sox reliever Scott Linebrink. Full disclosure: I’m a White Sox fan, and I’ve been to many games in which Linebrink has been booed off the field—so I had a little chuckle when I found out he went to Texas State.

Aug. 29 vs. Ole Miss, 12:00 pm

In terms of roster makeup, this year’s Ole Miss squad kind of resembles last year’s Mizzou team. The Rebels only have one senior on their roster (in ’08, Mizzou had no seniors), but they do have some young talent that can’t be ignored. Sophomore Katie Norris led Ole Miss with 321 kills as a freshman in ’08, and she’ll be joined by senior Caitlin Weiss (205 kills in ’08), sophomore Regina Thomas (200 kills), and junior Miranda Kitts (193 kills) on the offensive attack.

Seven of the Rebels’ 15 players are freshman and will be getting their first taste of NCAA competition this weekend. This is a young team that made a lot of mistakes last year (.182 hitting percentage in ’08—that’s pretty low) en route to a 14-15 (10-10 in SEC play) record last year.

Fun facts: The speed limit on campus roads at Ole Miss is 18 miles per hour in honor of former Rebel quarterback Archie Manning’s number. Other notable alumni include writer John Grisham and New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning.

Aug. 29 vs. Brigham Young, 6:30 pm

After beating Mizzou in an intense five-set match last year in Utah, BYU travels to Missouri for what should be a good defensive battle. The Cougars’ strength is on defense, as they held opponents to a .177 hitting percentage in 2008 while collecting 253.5 total team blocks.

Four starters return for BYU, including the terrific middle blocking duo of Rachel Dyer and Ashton Hansford. Dyer and Hansford had 159 total blocks apiece in 2008 to lead BYU’s defensive charge.

While BYU only managed to go 14-12 (7-9 in the Mountain West), they’re just two years removed from going to the NCAA Tournament with a 24-8 record. While the Texas State and Ole Miss matches promise to be exciting, the BYU match should see some high-intensity sets for the second straight year.

Fun facts: Notable alumni include television co-inventor Philo T. Farnsworth, Jeopardy! superstar Ken Jennings, and two-time Super Bowl MVP Steve Young, among many, many others.

Be sure to check back Friday evening and all day Saturday for updates from the tournament.