COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri volleyball head coach Dawn Sullivan and her staff announced the addition of Taylor Cook and Tyrah Ariail to the team on Tuesday. Both players will join Mizzou this semester in preparation for the 2025 season.
Taylor Cook
A 5-11 setter from Melissa, Texas, Cook comes to Columbia following an impressive career at Prestonwood Christian Academy. The daughter of James and Yjonne Cook, she accumulated over 2,500 career assists and led her team to three consecutive TAPPS 6A State Championships (2022-2024), with an outstanding 113-7 career record.
Cook earned several accolades, including being named the 2024 TAPPS 6A Setter of the Year, a 2024 AVCA Honorable Mention All-American, first-team all-state, and first-team all-district in 2024. She was also recognized as the 2021 District 9-4A Newcomer of the Year. A four-time all-district and three-time all-state honoree, Cook represented Prestonwood Christian Academy in a match against Cathedral Catholic at the ESPN high school showcase.
In addition to her high school success, Cook thrived in club volleyball, competing for Dallas Skyline in Carrollton, Texas. She accumulated 1,299 assists throughout her club career and earned spots on the 2023 JVA All-National Team and the 2023 GJNC 16 National All-Tournament Team. Her club teams won bronze medals at the 2024 GJNC 17 Open Championships and the 2023 GJNC 16 National Championships.
Cook’s father, James, played football at Central Florida.
Tyrah Ariail
Ariail, a 6-1 middle blocker from Plano, Texas, joins Mizzou as a redshirt senior after spending four seasons at Southern California. She led USC in blocks for the past two seasons.
In the most recent season, Ariail posted a career-high 115 total blocks (1.16 blocks/set), 144 kills on a .335 hitting percentage, and 37 digs. Her best performance came against Ohio, with 12 kills on September 14. She also set a career high with eight blocks in a match four times during the season and registered seven or more blocks on seven occasions.
As a redshirt sophomore in 2023, Ariail had 115 blocks (0.92 blocks/set, first on USC, 10th in the Pac-12) and a career-high 222 kills (1.78 kills/set, third on USC) on a .320 hitting percentage. She had six matches with double-digit kills, including a career-best 15 kills at Purdue on September 15, 2023. Ariail led USC in blocks during 15 matches, including a career-high nine blocks against California on November 17, 2023.
Ariail earned a spot on the 2023 Pac-12 All-Freshman Team, having recorded 92 kills (1.88 kills/set), a .360 hitting percentage, and 53 blocks (1.08 blocks/set).
Over her collegiate career at USC, Ariail totaled 458 kills with a .334 hitting percentage, 283 blocks, and 40 aces across 74 matches (70 starts).
