Bulldogs Drop Hard-Fought Effort To No. 5 Kansas

Friday, August 26

Starkville

7:00 PM

Mississippi State

0-1

Kansas

1-0

Kansas

Mississippi State

David McFatrich's Bulldogs put up a valiant effort on Friday against the No. 5 Kansas Jayhawks in front of a raucous crowd at The Griss.

Bulldogs Drop Hard-Fought Effort To No. 5 Kansas

August 26, 2016 | Volleyball

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STARKVILLE, Miss. – Heart and grit are the staples of Bulldog volleyball. On Friday night in front of a raucous crowd of 1,409 at Newell-Grissom, the Mississippi State Bulldogs exemplified those qualities and fought to the end but dropped a 3-0 decision to the No. 5 Kansas Jayhawks.

Evie Grace Singleton paced the Bulldogs with 8 kills, while Jelena Vujcin and Chelsea Duhs each turned in 7 on the night. The setting duo of Blossom Sato and Riley Duzenack turned in 14 and 13 assists, respectively, while Bali Leffall-Young paced State with 4 blocks.

"I cannot say enough how proud I am of this team and the fight they showed tonight," MSU head coach David McFatrich said. "We preach heart, soul and grit with Bulldog volleyball and they gave it their all against a very good Kansas team. We wish the result was different, but this is only the first match. We have a long way to go and I'm confident that this team is going to do great things."

The 1,409 fans that packed The Griss on Friday stands as the third-largest crowd in program history and is the highest opening day total at Newell-Grissom since 2011.

"Our fans were amazing and I cannot thank them enough for showing up and being as electric as they were," McFatrich said. "I've always said that The Griss is the best place in America to play collegiate volleyball and that really rings true when our fans pack this place out."

After the Bulldogs grabbed several early leads, Kansas pushed out to as much as a five-point lead in the first set. MSU would not relent, eventually coming back to within one, down 20-19. A pair of kills from Vujcin would keep the Dogs close and bring the Griss crowd to its feet, but Kansas pulled away and survived the first frame, 25-22.

A number of errors plagued State early on, but once again the toughness of Bulldog volleyball shined through. MSU would fight back after being down several early four-point deficits, tying it up at 11-11 and again at 12-12. State would hang tough once again, but could not jump out in front, as the Jayhawks took a two-set lead with a 25-20 victory.

Friday night's third set was a grinding battle early on, but a 7-1 Kansas run put the Jayhawks out in front. The Bulldogs would attempt several runs, but could not complete the comeback and dropped the final set 25-17 to close out the match.

"We seemed to shine across the board tonight, but there are still some areas we have to improve in. Bottom line is we have two matches tomorrow against good squads and that's where our focus is right now. We're excited to get back out there."

State returns tomorrow at noon CT against the Lamar Cardinals, who dropped a straight-sets decision to the Eastern Washington Eagles. MSU will cap off the day with a 7 p.m., showdown against the Eagles. Both matches will be broadcast on SEC Network +.

2016 Bulldog Invitational Schedule:
Friday, Aug. 26
Eastern Washington def. Lamar, 3-0 (25-16, 25-22, 25-14)
No. 5 Kansas def. Mississippi State, 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-17)

Saturday, Aug. 27
Kansas vs. Eastern Washington – 10 a.m.
Mississippi State vs. Lamar – 12 p.m.
Lamar vs. Kansas – 5 p.m.
Mississippi State vs. Eastern Washington – 7 p.m.

The Griss Electrifies On Opening Night:
A grand total of 1,409 people flocked to Newell-Grissom on Friday, which stands as the third-largest crowd in MSU volleyball history. It surpassed last year's opening day total of 1,108 and now marks the largest crowd in the David McFatrich era.

Harris Moving On Up:
Junior Payton Harris had 19 digs on the night and now stands in ninth place on the MSU career digs list with 1,188, surpassing Heather Schilling (1992-95). She is 2 digs away from eighth, 4 from seventh and 6 from sixth place.

Strong Start For The Dogs:
Despite the loss, a number of positives can be seen from the Bulldogs' play, especially within the first set. Jelena Vujcin led all players through the opening frame with 4 kills, while the Bulldogs topped the Jayhawks 13-10 in kills. MSU also earned more assists (11-8) and digs (16-9) in the first set.

Impressive Debuts For The Newcomers:
Three of MSU's four newcomers for the 2016 season made impressive contributions on Friday night. Junior transfer Jelena Vujcin fired off 7 kills and and connected for a pair of blocks tonight, while bringing unbelievable passion into every point. Freshman Riley Duzenack turned in 13 assists and 4 digs, while Emily Hill had a trio of kills and showcased incredible swing velocity all night.

Live Video:
The remaining of Mississippi State's matches this weekend will be broadcasted on SEC Network +, which can be accessed in the links below or by visiting WatchESPN.com.

MSU vs. Lamar
MSU vs. Eastern Washington
MSU vs. McNeese State

Live Stats:
Mississippi State will provide live stats for all matches this weekend. Live stats can be found here or by visiting HailState.com.

Promotions:
Below is a list of the remaining promotions for this weekend.

Saturday, Aug. 27
MSU vs. Lamar (12 p.m.):
- "Bully's Kids' Club Day": Free Bully bobbleheads while they last
- Kids' Zone
- Contests during break for MSU prizes

MSU vs. Eastern Washington (7 p.m.):
- Contests during break for MSU prizes

Sunday, Aug. 28
MSU vs. McNeese State (2 p.m.)
- Contests during break for MSU prizes

Social Media:
For more information on Mississippi State volleyball, follow the Bulldogs on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching for "HailStateVB." You can also find all-access coverage of the program on SnapChat by searching for "HailStateSnap."