After a sweeping loss to one of its newest SEC competitors, Alabama will return to Foster Auditorium on Sunday, Oct. 7 to take on Missouri.
Still on the road to recovery, the Crimson Tide is ready for another chance to prove their worth.
Freshman outside hitter Kryssi Daniels said Mizzou has the team’s undivided attention.
“I think it’s going to help that we don’t have a game on Friday, so we basically get seven days off from the last game,” Daniels said. “So, starting today, our main focus is on Mizzou.”
Daniels and the rest of the Tide have put Sunday’s loss to Texas A&M behind in hopes of being able to adequately prepare for their next match.
Head coach Ed Allen expects to see a similar level of competition in the Tide’s upcoming match, as in the Texas A&M match.
Mizzou (12-4, SEC 3-0), however, seems to have experience on their side. The Tigers only have two freshmen on the roster, compared to Alabama’s nine new players.
Though the Tide does not have the same amount of experience as Mizzou, the team has complete confidence they will get there one day, and this is the year to rebuild, especially after a disappointing last season.
“We have a great group of girls, and I think, with a little bit more experience and playing together more, I have no doubt that this program is going to the right place,” Daniels said.
Looking back at the Tide’s season last year, the team seems to be steadily improving.
On Oct. 3, 2011, the Crimson Tide (8-8, SEC 2-4) held a record slightly worse than the one it holds now (13-5, SEC 2-4), much of which can be attributed to the Tide’s preseason.
Freshman Sierra Wilson said the issue currently facing the Tide is maintaining energy.
“It’s basically finding a level of energy where we can be successful at maintaining that consistently throughout the entire match,” Wilson said.
That same point has not gone unnoticed by Allen, either.
“I think we play hard throughout sets,” Allen said. “But, we’ve got to string it together for longer periods of time and try to get closer to 25 points.”
Along with energy, though, comes consistency, and with consistency comes victory. Consistency is something the Tide still has issues with, but has made a priority to improve upon over the course of the season.
