You didn’t think football was the only team busy in the portal, did you?
Mizzou Volleyball’s offseason has already kicked into high gear a week after the team’s season ended in the Sweet Sixteen. Six players have exited or joined the program in the eight days following the Tigers’ loss to Kentucky in Pittsburgh.
With seven players departing via graduation, including three starters, Dawn Sullivan and the coaching staff have some needs to fill. But the team must also stay under the new roster limit, set at a maximum of 18 players for the upcoming season.
Let’s take a look at how the program has balanced these competing needs so far, and what remains ahead for Mizzou.
Departures
Four players have entered the transfer portal from the 2024 team, beginning with freshman outside hitter Aspen Maxwell on December 11. Maxwell had committed to the Tigers at the end of the Joshua Taylor era, so the move wasn’t too shocking considering she wasn’t playing for the staff she’d signed up for.
Backup setter Sarah White, who saw her playing time diminished this year following the addition of Marina Crownover, graduated from Mizzou and took her grad year. She’s now at USF, where she can compete for a starting role.
Finally, two defensive specialists have moved on from the Tigers. Tatum Longnecker entered the portal after playing in two sets, both in this season’s match against Kansas City, in her two years at Mizzou.
And Alayna Pearson, who joined the team last year after playing in 17 matches for Texas A&M as a freshman, struggled to get playing time with the Tigers. She enters the portal for the second time in as many seasons after playing in 12 sets this season, unable to move past Kaylen Rush for the role of serving sub and occasional defensive specialist.
I’d expect that Pearson sensed, or was told, that Rush would be the one to step up into Kiaraliz Perez Catala’s now-vacant job as the team’s main defensive specialist alongside Maya Sands. Now, the former top-150 recruit will move on to her third team in three seasons.
Arrivals
Mizzou has made two portal additions, both opposite/right side hitters. First, the Tigers added 6-0 senior right side hitter Caylen Alexander, the Big West Player of the Year at Hawai’i.
Alexander ranked fifth in the nation with 5.09 kills per set and seventh with 5.64 points per set, totaling 611 kills on a .259 hitting percentage. She also added great value on the defensive end with 292 digs and 57 total blocks, which should allow her to be a six rotation player for the Tigers and likely slide into the role left behind by Jordan Iliff.
For more on Alexander and her future with the team, you can read my full article reacting to the news.
Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK
The Tigers also added a Missouri native last night, securing the commitment of 6-1 redshirt sophomore Grace O’Reilly. She spent her last two seasons at Long Beach State, redshirting in 2023 and starting to get playing time late this year. The left handed hitter recorded 39 kills, hitting .155, alongside 11 digs and 20 total blocks in nine matches played.
O’Reilly looks like a solid depth addition, bolstering that right side position after the departure of Naomi Franco. She also seems like a longer-term play by the coaching staff, a candidate to take over for Caylen Alexander as the starter at right side hitter after next season.
What’s Next
I’d anticipated a quieter rest of the offseason for the Tigers before the addition of O’Reilly, which places the team one over the roster limit of 18 players. That means at least one, if not two or more, departures are on the way.
I’m not so sure of my prediction as before, but the team should be full at setter and libero/defensive specialist. Claire Morrissey, the third ranked recruit in the nation last season, should also be ready to take on a starting role at outside hitter after assuming more responsibilities late in the year.
Mizzou’s biggest remaining question mark is at middle blocker, where the team loses multi year starter Colleen Finney and former starter Morgan Isenberg to graduation. While Regan Haith had a phenomenal first season starting for the Tigers, she’ll need someone alongside her.
The team’s current options are Tia Phinezy, who was brought in as a freshman last season with lots of raw talent and potential, or incoming freshman Ashley Euston. Sullivan has leaned on experience and rarely started freshmen in her two seasons in Columbia, so Phinezy is the clear favorite for now.
But if the Tigers can make an impact portal addition at this position, someone who would be a strong starter alongside Haith, I’d expect the staff to make that move. Mizzou will have the best returning libero and setter in the conference alongside a promising group of hitters and a reliable middle blocker in Haith, which should allow them to again compete towards the top end of the SEC.
Adding an impact middle blocker to the equation could make this team a contender again, not just in the conference but to reach the second weekend in consecutive seasons. Here are a few players which fit the bill and to keep an eye on:
Colby Neal, 6-3 RS SR, Oregon – Neal made a big jump in her junior year, becoming a regular starter for the Ducks. She recorded 115 kills, hitting .300, and had 128 total blocks to finish second on the team. Neal would bring proven high major production and postseason experience, alongside valuable height.
Gabbi Essix, 6-3 Grad, Florida – Speaking of proven high major production, how about that production coming in the SEC with one of its premier programs? Essix only played one match this season, having her year end due to knee surgery, but finished both 2022 and 2023 with over 100 kills and blocks. As long as the knee heals up, the former USA Collegiate National Team member and Pan American Cup gold medalist might be the best target out there for the Tigers.
Lourdes Myers, 6-3 RS SR, Purdue – Myers has started nearly every match the last two seasons for Purdue, regularly one of the Big Ten’s top teams. This year was arguably her best yet with 146 kills on a .356 hitting percentage and 121 total blocks, a career high. Myers’ starting experience and offensive efficiency both stand out, making her one of the top available players in the portal.
Trinity Luckett, 6-1 JR, SLU – Luckett is one of the top mid major players in the portal as a starter at SLU in both of her first two college seasons. She was named All-Atlantic Ten Second Team after hitting .303 with 239 kills and totaling 138 total blocks this year. Luckett’s time in the Show Me State with the Billikens, alongside being a Bentonville, Arkansas, native, make her a logical target for Mizzou. She might be their best option outside of one of the big names I’ve listed here from the Big Ten or SEC.
Tyrah Ariail, 6-1 Grad, USC – Ariail has been a regular starter for USC in each of her three healthy seasons at the collegiate level. She’s hit above .300 every season in college with over 140 kills each of the past two years, also recording 229 total blocks during that time frame. Though Ariail lacks the height of some others on the list, she can make up for that with her offensive efficiency and defensive production much like Colleen Finney did for the Tigers the last two seasons.