Friday, September 2
Little Rock, Ark.
10:00 AM
Mississippi State
vs
UT Martin
MSU head coach David McFatrich leads the 3-1 Bulldogs into their first road test of the year, as they travel to the Little Rock Invitational.
Bulldogs Head To Little Rock For First Road Test Of 2016
September 01, 2016 | Volleyball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Looking to continue their hot start to the 2016 campaign, the Mississippi State volleyball Bulldogs hit the road for the first time this year as they take part in the Little Rock Invitational.
The Bulldogs will begin the weekend on Friday, Sept. 2 against UT Martin, with first serve set for 10 a.m. CT. MSU will finish out the day against host Little Rock at 6 p.m.
State's final opponent of the weekend will be the Oklahoma Sooners, as the two squads will face each other on Saturday, Sept. 3 at 10 a.m.
"We have a tough field coming up this weekend and of course it's always a challenge when you're playing away from home," MSU head coach David McFatrich said. "We spent this week learning from last weekend and improving on a number of things and I know these girls are prepared to go out this weekend and put it all out on the court."
Last weekend saw the Bulldogs go 3-1 in the opening weekend of 2016. MSU fell in a tight battle against No. 5 Kansas to start off the year, but bounced back with three-straight wins, defeating Lamar, Eastern Washington and McNeese State.
A balanced effort between the Bulldog freshmen and seniors was the story after week one. Evie Grace Singleton leads the Bulldogs with 55 kills, 5 aces and 61.5 points, while Jazmyne Johnson has been the key to MSU's defensive efforts with a team-best 17 blocks.
Singleton tied her MSU career high with 20 kills against McNeese State, while Johnson set a career high with 9 total blocks against Lamar. Singleton also notched 67 total attacks in that match, setting a new career high.
On the other end, freshmen Emily Hill and Riley Duzenack have been phenomenal in their first four matches on the collegiate level. Hill busted onto the scene against Lamar with 18 kills and 6 blocks, following it up with 14 kills and a trio of blocks against McNeese State. Duzenack earned her first-career start against Lamar and made it count, tallying 39 assists to spearhead her team-best 88 assists through the first four contests.
Not to be overlooked is the play of All-American libero Payton Harris, who tops the team with 75 digs. For her career she has 1,244 digs, which stands sixth on the MSU career digs list and 19 away from tying Jennifer Shupe (1996-99) for fifth.
"I would say that yesterday we had one of our better practices of late and that's a good sign going into a weekend of play," McFatrich said. "The girls were giving all-out energy and showing what Bulldog volleyball is all about. Now we just have to transition that into match play."
2016 Little Rock Invitational Schedule:
Thursday, Sept. 1
Little Rock vs. Oklahoma – 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 2
Mississippi State vs. UT Martin – 10 a.m.
Little Rock vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff – 12 p.m.
Oklahoma vs. UT Martin – 4 p.m.
Mississippi State vs. Little Rock – 6 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 3
Mississippi State vs. Oklahoma – 10 a.m.
UT Martin vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff – 12 p.m.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff vs. Oklahoma – 3 p.m.
Little Rock vs. UT Martin – 5 p.m.
Last Time Out:
The Bulldogs opened up the 2016 season within the friendly confines of the Newell-Grissom Building, picking up a trio of wins to start the season 3-1. MSU dropped a tight 3-0 decision on Friday against No. 5 Kansas before taking down Lamar, 3-2, and Eastern Washington, 3-0, on Saturday. State wrapped up the weekend with a thrilling five-set victory against McNeese State on Sunday.
Scouting The Skyhawks:
UT Martin will be the subject of MSU's first game in Little Rock for the weekend. The Skyhawks enter the weekend with a 1-2 record, their lone win coming against Binghampton. State and UTM will meet for the 10th time in history, with the Bulldogs holding a 7-2 advantage in the series and a 3-1 edge on neutral ground. UTM did however take the last meeting, 3-1, in Starkville on Aug. 27, 2011.
Scouting The Trojans:
This weekend's host, the Little Rock Trojans, come into the tourney looking for their first win of the season. UALR is 0-3 on the year, but have won its last four home matches dating back to last season. The Trojans enter the weekend as one of the nation's top blocking teams, standing third nationally with 42 total blocks and fifth with 3.82 blocks per set. In history, the Bulldogs and Trojans have met 11 times, with UALR holding a 7-4 lead. The last meeting between the two came on Aug. 31, 2013, with the Trojans winning 3-1 in Starkville.
Scouting The Sooners:
It's been long time, no see for the Bulldogs and Sooners. The two teams will meet for only the second time in history, with the only meeting being a 3-1 Oklahoma win in 1991. OU is 3-0 on the year and led by former Bulldog Kimmy Gardiner, who has a team-high 29 kills. The Sooners defeated all three of their opponents last week in straight sets.
Harris Chasing Down MSU Career Digs Record:
Sophomore Payton Harris is closing in on the career record for digs at Mississippi State after tallying 75 in the opening weekend. Harris began the year in 10th and has since jumped up to sixth on the list with 1,244 digs. She is 19 shy of tying Jennifer Shupe (1996-99) for fifth place.
Freshmen Off To A Hot Start:
A pair of Bulldog freshmen began their collegiate careers last weekend during the Bulldog Invitational and did nothing short of impress. Emily Hill made her first-career start in her second match and made the most of it, tallying 18 kills and 6 blocks against Lamar. Setter Riley Duzenack also had her coming out party against the Cardinals, earning 39 assists and a trio of aces for the Dogs. Duzenack currently leads the Bulldogs with 88 assists.
Singleton Picks Up Where She Left Off:
Senior Evie Grace Singleton finished last season as the Bulldogs' undoubted leader across the board. Four matches into 2016 and she's back at it again. Singleton leads the Bulldogs in kills (55), aces (5) and points (61.5) after opening weekend and finished Sunday's match against McNeese State by tying her MSU career high with 20 kills and setting a new career high with 67 attack attempts.
Live Video:
Mississippi State's match against Little Rock will be live streamed courtesy of www.lrtrojans.com. UALR's live stream is premium content and fans can purchase a 24 Hour Pass for $5.95 by following the link below.
MSU vs. Little Rock
Live Stats:
Little Rock will provide live stats for all matches this weekend. Links for live stats to Mississippi State matches are located below.
MSU vs. UT Martin
MSU vs. Little Rock
MSU vs. Oklahoma
Admission:
Fans can purchase tickets to all matches this weekend (including non-Little Rock matches) one hour prior to first serve at the Jack Stephens Center box office. Prices are $6 for adults and $4 for children grades K-12.
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."
The Bulldogs will begin the weekend on Friday, Sept. 2 against UT Martin, with first serve set for 10 a.m. CT. MSU will finish out the day against host Little Rock at 6 p.m.
State's final opponent of the weekend will be the Oklahoma Sooners, as the two squads will face each other on Saturday, Sept. 3 at 10 a.m.
"We have a tough field coming up this weekend and of course it's always a challenge when you're playing away from home," MSU head coach David McFatrich said. "We spent this week learning from last weekend and improving on a number of things and I know these girls are prepared to go out this weekend and put it all out on the court."
Last weekend saw the Bulldogs go 3-1 in the opening weekend of 2016. MSU fell in a tight battle against No. 5 Kansas to start off the year, but bounced back with three-straight wins, defeating Lamar, Eastern Washington and McNeese State.
A balanced effort between the Bulldog freshmen and seniors was the story after week one. Evie Grace Singleton leads the Bulldogs with 55 kills, 5 aces and 61.5 points, while Jazmyne Johnson has been the key to MSU's defensive efforts with a team-best 17 blocks.
Singleton tied her MSU career high with 20 kills against McNeese State, while Johnson set a career high with 9 total blocks against Lamar. Singleton also notched 67 total attacks in that match, setting a new career high.
On the other end, freshmen Emily Hill and Riley Duzenack have been phenomenal in their first four matches on the collegiate level. Hill busted onto the scene against Lamar with 18 kills and 6 blocks, following it up with 14 kills and a trio of blocks against McNeese State. Duzenack earned her first-career start against Lamar and made it count, tallying 39 assists to spearhead her team-best 88 assists through the first four contests.
Not to be overlooked is the play of All-American libero Payton Harris, who tops the team with 75 digs. For her career she has 1,244 digs, which stands sixth on the MSU career digs list and 19 away from tying Jennifer Shupe (1996-99) for fifth.
"I would say that yesterday we had one of our better practices of late and that's a good sign going into a weekend of play," McFatrich said. "The girls were giving all-out energy and showing what Bulldog volleyball is all about. Now we just have to transition that into match play."
2016 Little Rock Invitational Schedule:
Thursday, Sept. 1
Little Rock vs. Oklahoma – 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 2
Mississippi State vs. UT Martin – 10 a.m.
Little Rock vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff – 12 p.m.
Oklahoma vs. UT Martin – 4 p.m.
Mississippi State vs. Little Rock – 6 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 3
Mississippi State vs. Oklahoma – 10 a.m.
UT Martin vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff – 12 p.m.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff vs. Oklahoma – 3 p.m.
Little Rock vs. UT Martin – 5 p.m.
Last Time Out:
The Bulldogs opened up the 2016 season within the friendly confines of the Newell-Grissom Building, picking up a trio of wins to start the season 3-1. MSU dropped a tight 3-0 decision on Friday against No. 5 Kansas before taking down Lamar, 3-2, and Eastern Washington, 3-0, on Saturday. State wrapped up the weekend with a thrilling five-set victory against McNeese State on Sunday.
Scouting The Skyhawks:
UT Martin will be the subject of MSU's first game in Little Rock for the weekend. The Skyhawks enter the weekend with a 1-2 record, their lone win coming against Binghampton. State and UTM will meet for the 10th time in history, with the Bulldogs holding a 7-2 advantage in the series and a 3-1 edge on neutral ground. UTM did however take the last meeting, 3-1, in Starkville on Aug. 27, 2011.
Scouting The Trojans:
This weekend's host, the Little Rock Trojans, come into the tourney looking for their first win of the season. UALR is 0-3 on the year, but have won its last four home matches dating back to last season. The Trojans enter the weekend as one of the nation's top blocking teams, standing third nationally with 42 total blocks and fifth with 3.82 blocks per set. In history, the Bulldogs and Trojans have met 11 times, with UALR holding a 7-4 lead. The last meeting between the two came on Aug. 31, 2013, with the Trojans winning 3-1 in Starkville.
Scouting The Sooners:
It's been long time, no see for the Bulldogs and Sooners. The two teams will meet for only the second time in history, with the only meeting being a 3-1 Oklahoma win in 1991. OU is 3-0 on the year and led by former Bulldog Kimmy Gardiner, who has a team-high 29 kills. The Sooners defeated all three of their opponents last week in straight sets.
Harris Chasing Down MSU Career Digs Record:
Sophomore Payton Harris is closing in on the career record for digs at Mississippi State after tallying 75 in the opening weekend. Harris began the year in 10th and has since jumped up to sixth on the list with 1,244 digs. She is 19 shy of tying Jennifer Shupe (1996-99) for fifth place.
Freshmen Off To A Hot Start:
A pair of Bulldog freshmen began their collegiate careers last weekend during the Bulldog Invitational and did nothing short of impress. Emily Hill made her first-career start in her second match and made the most of it, tallying 18 kills and 6 blocks against Lamar. Setter Riley Duzenack also had her coming out party against the Cardinals, earning 39 assists and a trio of aces for the Dogs. Duzenack currently leads the Bulldogs with 88 assists.
Singleton Picks Up Where She Left Off:
Senior Evie Grace Singleton finished last season as the Bulldogs' undoubted leader across the board. Four matches into 2016 and she's back at it again. Singleton leads the Bulldogs in kills (55), aces (5) and points (61.5) after opening weekend and finished Sunday's match against McNeese State by tying her MSU career high with 20 kills and setting a new career high with 67 attack attempts.
Live Video:
Mississippi State's match against Little Rock will be live streamed courtesy of www.lrtrojans.com. UALR's live stream is premium content and fans can purchase a 24 Hour Pass for $5.95 by following the link below.
MSU vs. Little Rock
Live Stats:
Little Rock will provide live stats for all matches this weekend. Links for live stats to Mississippi State matches are located below.
MSU vs. UT Martin
MSU vs. Little Rock
MSU vs. Oklahoma
Admission:
Fans can purchase tickets to all matches this weekend (including non-Little Rock matches) one hour prior to first serve at the Jack Stephens Center box office. Prices are $6 for adults and $4 for children grades K-12.
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."
Players Mentioned
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L/DS
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/ Volleyball
RS/MB
/ Volleyball
OH
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