Mississippi State
14-12 (3-9)
Arkansas
15-9 (5-7)SEC
State Drops 3-0 Decision To Arkansas
November 09, 2015 | Volleyball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Returning home for the first time in two weeks, the Mississippi State volleyball Bulldogs (14-12, 3-9 SEC) dropped a 3-0 decision to the Arkansas Razorbacks (15-9, 5-7 SEC) Sunday afternoon at Newell-Grissom, 25-21, 25-23, 29-27.
The Bulldogs managed to put together several set points in the third frame, but could not capitalize to get back into the match. Arkansas used a flurry of runs in all three sets to create the distance needed to win and held off a furious Bulldog rally in the third to seal the contest.
“That was a tough one to leave out there, especially when we came that close in the third set,” MSU coach David McFatrich said. “Our girls put their all on the court, but fell short. We have to get better at playing in the pressure situations and making those key plays to win sets and matches. Now we have to regroup, get back to practice and prepare for next weekend against Auburn and Texas A&M.”
The Bulldogs offense presence was on full performance Sunday, as State led the kills battle, 53-32. Leading the way was Alex Warren, who tallied 18 for the match. Nine of those kills came in the third set, as she tried to rally her teammates back into the contest. Down 18-14, the Bulldogs strung together a 6-1 run, highlighted by a pair of kills from Warren and Evie Grace Singleton each. Two of Warren's kills in the set shot the Bulldogs into the lead, coming at 12-11 and 21-20. Her ninth would give State its second set point at 27-26, but three-straight MSU errors erased the lead and gave UA a 29-27 third-set win to secure the match.
For the match, Warren earned a .424 clip, which crushed her previous season high.
Evie Grace Singleton and Chelsea Duhs also turned in double-digit kills for the match with 14 and 10, respectively. Singleton earned five of those kills in the first set, including one that pulled MSU within two at the end of the frame, 23-21. However, it would not be enough as the Hogs secured the 1-0 lead.
The second set saw MSU mount a major rally to pull itself back into the set. Down six points midway through, Warren, Singleton and Duhs sparked the Maroon and White offense with a number of kills. State would eventually claw itself back into the contest, drawing within one (24-23) thanks to a bruising kill from Duhs. It would not be enough, as Arkansas' Pilar Victoria put one away to secure the set.
Catalyzing the hot play of the State attacking trio was the duo of setters, Blossom Sato and Shelby Anderton. Sato earned a match-high 27 assists, while Anderton put together 16. Sato has now earned 25-plus assists in 19 matches this season.
Defensively, the Razorbacks won the blocking battle, 9.0 to MSU's 3.0. State's Bali Leffall-Young earned a pair of blocks to lead MSU, while four different Razorbacks tallied four blocks. State took the digs battle, 45-38, with Cheyenne Spell leading all players with 16.
Danielle Harbin, who had 13 kills, led the Arkansas offense for the day. Adrien Wohlschlaeger topped UA with 23 assists, while Okiana Valle was the team leader with 15 digs.
State now turns its attention to next weekend, where it will host Auburn and Texas A&M at The Griss. The Bulldogs and Tigers face off Friday, Nov. 13 at 5 p.m. CT, while MSU and TAMU battle on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 1 p.m. Both matches will be live streamed 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.
