Mississippi State
Troy
State Blanks Troy, Bows To Colorado In MSU Classic Title Match
August 30, 2008 | Volleyball
? Official Statistics (vs. Troy) (PDF)
? Official Statistics (vs. Colorado)
? Official Statistics (vs. Colorado) (PDF)
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Freshman Faith Steinwedell and senior Cristina Jucan totaled a match-high 11 kills apiece Saturday night but it was not enough to lift Mississippi State past Colorado in the title match of the 2008 MSU Classic. The Buffaloes (3-0) bested the Bulldogs in straight-sets, winning 25-19, 25-21, 25-21 to finish as the lone unbeaten team in the two-day tournament. It was the lone loss of the weekend for Mississippi State, which blanked Troy University earlier in the day.
"We had our moments against a talented and well-coached Colorado team," said Seals. "I was pleased to see Faith step up like she did. She will be a valuable asset to our team, and like our other young players, she should get better with each match we play."
Bulldog veterans Jucan and Ioana Demian represented Mississippi State on the all-tournament team. Jucan tallied 33 kills (3.67 kills per game) and 18 kills while Demian had 24 kills and shared team honors for digs (19) with junior setter Dorey Gray. Steinwedell finished with 22 kills and a .381 hitting percentage.
The Bulldogs and the Buffaloes battled on near even terms statistically. Both teams totaled 39 kills, State held a 42-41 edge in digs and CU had a narrow 8-7 advantage in total team blocks. But Colorado had nine fewer attack errors and got balance on offense, led by Schylur Edelman's eight kills and .583 attack average.
Jucan and Demian combined for 28 kills as the Bulldogs blanked Troy 3-0 (26-24, 25-21, 25-22) in Saturday's opening match of the second round of the MSU Classic. Jucan had five of her match-high 15 kills in the opening set, Demian tallied five in the second set, and both registered six kills in the match-clinching third set.
After trailing 4-1 in the first two stanzas, State bolted to a 12-4 advantage in the third set and put the match away on Jucan's 15th kill of the match.
Mandy Mellencamp, Faith Steinwedell and Ashley Newsome registered five kills each while Newsome led State at the net with four total blocks. Jucan totaled a team-high nine digs, with Demian and Gray adding eight each.
Troy (0-2) got 11 kills from Meghan Gilroy and 10 from Aubre Smith, while Meaghan Washlow had a match-high 10 digs.
State is scheduled to travel to Lake Charles, La., Thursday to continue early-season tourney play in the two-day, five-team McNeese State Cowgirl Invitational.
MSU CLASSIC ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Lauren Schaefer-MVP (CU), Alex Buth (CU) Kaitlyn Burkett (CU), Ioana Demian (MSU), Cristina Jucan (MSU), Aubre Smith (Troy), Philana Hemlee (UAPB).
