COLUMBIA, Mo. – Madison Scheer led the offensive effort for Auburn, reaching double figures in kills (12) for the 23rd time this season but it wasn’t quite enough as the Tigers dropped their regular-season finale to No. 24 Missouri, 3-0 (25-18, 25-19, 25-16).
Scheer, the Eureka, Missouri native, felt right at home in the Show Me State. She would pace the Tigers with three kills during the opening frame on her 10 swings. Right side Bella Bell wasn’t far behind, grabbing two kills of her own on her two swings.
It was freshman Lauren Dreves and junior libero Alexis Dacosta leading the charge in the back row. The duo combined for eight digs in the first set. Dacosta would finish the match with a team-high nine.
Still, Missouri found ways around the Auburn defense, hitting for .295 in the first set. A 5-0 run in the midway through the set gave the home side all the cushion they needed to take the early lead, 1-0.
Scheer continued her dominance on offense. When the dust settled in the second set, the junior outside had racked up nine kills on an impressive .381 hitting percentage.
Auburn’s serving also improved. Two of the three aces, both from freshmen Dreves and Kalei Edson
, were in the second frame.
However, Missouri’s offense proved too stout to run down. Once again, the home side hit for a big number, found multiple scoring rounds and closed out the set to take a commanding lead, 2-0.
Missouri kicked off the third set on an 8-2 run, putting Auburn in a tough hole to climb out of.
Scheer and Co. weren’t going to go down without a fight, though. She would add three more kills to her total, finishing with a team-high 12 kills on .379 hitting, marking the 23rd time in 2024 reaching double digits.
Dreves, Bell and Bel Zimmerman all tallied two kills apiece but it wasn’t quite enough to overcome the initial deficit.
In the end, Missouri closed out the set and match, 3-0.
MATCH NOTES
- Auburn has tallied at least five aces in each of the last three matches
- Madison Scheer reached double digits () for the 23rd time this season
- Scheer has also picked up an ace in five of the last six matches
WHAT CROUCH HAD TO SAY
Opening statement…
“A difficult way to end the regular season for sure. Regardless of what our record says, this team has been the best iteration of Auburn Volleyball in program history. We’re a better volleyball team from 2022, a better team than last year and we’ll continue to get better. The SEC is the best that it’s ever been. That’s a good thing for our league and ultimately a good thing for us going forward. We’ll see what the committee has to say tomorrow but again, whatever they decide, I’m proud of what we accomplished this season. We had two top-15 wins and featured in the top-25 for the second straight year. It’s certainly something to be proud of.”