Mississippi State
14-11, 3-8SEC
Florida
18-4, 10-3SEC
Bulldog Volleyball Drops 3-0 Decision At No. 11 Florida
November 06, 2015 | Volleyball
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Despite a valiant effort from start to finish, the Mississippi State volleyball Bulldogs (14-11, 3-8 SEC) dropped a straight-sets decision to the 11th-ranked Florida Gators (18-4, 10-3 SEC) Friday afternoon in Gainesville, 25-18, 27-25, 25-18.
The Bulldogs were in contention in every set, including holding the lead throughout the majority of the second and third frame, but could not close the door on the Gators. MSU held set point in the second at 24-23, but fell just short of closing the deal. State would grab the lead from the get-go in the third and hold it until midway, when UF pushed ahead and pulled away to secure the 3-0 win.
“I'm really proud of how this team fought today,” MSU coach David McFatrich said. “Playing Florida always requires you to be at your best and I felt like our girls brought it until the very end. They left it all out on the court and despite the loss, I was proud of the heart and soul performance of this team.”
State kept pace with the Gators to start the match, despite Florida beginning up 6-1. MSU countered UF's lead with a 7-1 run to push ahead, 8-7, early on the in the match. The run was spurred by three kills from Evie Grace Singleton, who paced the Bulldogs throughout the match with 11 kills. The Bulldogs would keep it close until a series of small runs pushed the Gators ahead for good, giving the home squad a 25-18 first-set victory.
MSU bounced back strong in the second, maintaining the lead for a majority of the set. State's lead would go as high as four through the frame and they would stay ahead or tied until Florida finally broke through at 25-24 after fighting off a set point for the Maroon and White. A solo block from Bali Leffall-Young, one of four match-leading blocks on the day for the junior, would tie the set at 25-all. However, back-to-back UF kills sealed a 2-0 lead for the home team with a 27-25 second-set win.
Despite dropping the second set, State carried its momentum over into the third, starting off hot and looking to get itself back into the match. The Bulldogs pushed their lead to as much as four (up 6-2) and maintained the lead until midway through the set. Florida jumped ahead for the first time in the third at 16-15, allowed MSU to tie once and never looked back from there. The Gators were able to keep the Maroon and White at bay, taking the set, 25-18, and the match, 3-0.
Behind Singleton's team-leading 11 kills, Chelsea Duhs and Alex Warren both turned in six. Shelby Anderton topped the Bulldogs in assists with 16, while Blossom Sato turned in 11.
Leffall-Young's four blocks led State's defensive presence, while four others turned in a block assist each to put the team total at 5.0. Cheyenne Spell was the team leader in digs with 12.
Rhamat Alhassan and Alex Holston led the Gators with 15 kills each, while Mackenzie Dagostino led the team with 46 assists. Nikki O'Rourke lead the match with 18 digs and three aces. Alhassan topped the team with three blocks throughout the match.
State will return home for a Sunday showdown against Arkansas at Newell-Grissom. First serve is set for 1 p.m. CT, on the SEC Network +.
For more information and updates on Mississippi State volleyball, fans can follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at HailStateVB.
