Mississippi State
0-15-5 / SEC
Florida
1-08-2 / SEC
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | 25 | 25 | 26 | 3 |
| Mississippi State | 20 | 18 | 24 | 0 |
Bulldogs Play #7 Gators Tough In SEC Opener
September 17, 2011 | Volleyball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Mississippi State turned in one of its strongest overall performances of the year but came up short in a hard-fought three-set loss to No. 7 Florida on the opening Friday night for SEC volleyball competition.
The Bulldogs (5-5, 0-1 SEC) positioned themselves for wins in two of the three sets before bowing to the Gators (8-2, 1-0 SEC) 25-20, 25-18 and 26-24.
The match was witnessed by 1,009 fans, the second-largest Newell-Grissom volleyball gathering and the largest against a Southeastern Conference opponent.
"The atmosphere created by our fans was incredible," said third-year head coach Jenny Hazelwood. "Our team played one of its strongest matches of the year and against one of the nation's top teams, and the fans responded in a big way. We just needed to come up with a few more big plays at key times tonight. Florida is such a talented and well-coached team. They didn't make many mistakes, so we had to earn everything we got tonight."
Florida out-hit State .310 to .198 and held a 9-6 edge in total team blocking.
A kill by Faith Steinwedell gave the Bulldogs a 20-16 win in the opening set when State out-hit Florida .244 to .167. Florida committed six attack errors in the opening frame, equaling their error total of the remainder of the match. But the Gators, powered by Kristy Jaeckel, out-pointed State 9-1 down the stretch to claim the opening set.
Despite a five-kill showing by Caitlin Rance, Florida warmed up its hitting in the second set and took a 2-0 lead in the match with a 25-18 win. Rance tied the score at 11-11 with a key kill, but Florida answered with a 5-1 run and cruised on to the win.
Rance had four kills on five attacks in the third set, took a 22-19 lead on the last of Chanelle Baker's three kills in the stanza, and built out a lead at 24-22. Florida, riding a seven-kill effort by Jaeckel in the frame, scored the next four points to win the set and claim its 39th straight win over Mississippi State.
Rance and Lainey Wyman finished with 10 kills each to pace the Bulldogs. Senior middle Hannah Wilkinson hit .778 with seven kills in nine error-free attacks. Wyman, who opened the weekend with a league-leading 41 blocks, tallied four for State. Freshman Bentley Witte paced MSU's defensive efforts with 13 digs.
UF's Jaeckel finished with a match-high 14 kills while Tangerine Wiggs added 11 and a match-best five blocks and Kelly Murphy chipped in 10 kills. Murphy made it a triple double with 19 assists and 11 digs. Taylor Unroe totaled 15 digs to lead all defenders in the match.
"This was definitely a step in the right direction and showed what we are capable of doing against an outstanding volleyball team like Florida. We've just got to build on it," added Hazelwood."
The Bulldogs continue SEC opening weekend competition Sunday playing host to South Carolina (9-1, 0-0 SEC). First serve at the Newell-Grissom Building is set for 1:30 p.m. and there is no charge for admission.
