The Bulldogs are set to welcome Auburn and Alabama to The Griss this weekend to open home SEC play.
Bulldog Volleyball Notebook: Week 5
September 27, 2016 | Volleyball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Southeastern Conference play is underway for the Mississippi State volleyball Bulldogs, as they return from a successful road trip to open up home SEC play. As State gets ready to welcome Auburn and Alabama to The Griss, it's time to take a look back at last weekend and the 2016 season as a whole with this week's Bulldog Volleyball Notebook.
Weekend Recap…
The Bulldogs split a pair of matches to open up the 2016 SEC slate last weekend. MSU downed Tennessee in straight sets on Friday night in Knoxville, winning an SEC opener for the first time since 2006. The Dogs then traveled to Lexington to face the Kentucky Wildcats and pushed the match to four sets, but fell in a heartbreaker, 3-1.
Friday, Sept. 23
Mississippi State def. Tennessee, 3-0 (26-24, 25-23, 25-22)
Sunday, Sept. 25
Kentucky def. Mississippi State, 3-1 (25-21, 22-25, 25-14, 26-24)
Up Next…
Mississippi State will welcome Auburn and Alabama to The Griss this weekend as the Dogs open up 2016 home SEC play. MSU is 20-37 all time against the Tigers, including a 11-15 record in Starkville. State will look to avenge a five-set loss at home last year to AU and snap the Tigers six-match winning streak. Alabama holds a 44-16 advantage against MSU and have won the last five meetings, including a 3-1 decision last year in Tuscaloosa. This will be UA's first trip to Starkville since 2013.
Friday, Sept. 30
Mississippi State (9-7, 1-1 SEC) vs. Auburn (7-8, 1-1 SEC) – 7 p.m. CT
SEC Network +
Starkville, Miss.
Newell-Grissom Building
Sunday, Oct. 2
Mississippi State (8-6, 0-0 SEC) vs. Alabama (12-3, 1-1 SEC) – 3 p.m. CT
SEC Network
Starkville, Miss.
Newell-Grissom Building
Bulldogs In The SEC & NCAA Statistical Standings…
Leading The Bulldogs…
Kills: Evie Grace Singleton, 249
Assists: Blossom Sato, 409
Aces: Evie Grace Singleton, 28
Digs: Payton Harris, 206
Blocks: Jazmyne Johnson, 73
Points: Evie Grace Singleton, 289.5
Maroon And White To Make First National TV Appearance Of 2016…
Sunday's contest will be the first time this year that the Bulldogs will take to the national stage, as they will face off against Alabama on SEC Network. MSU was 3-2 last season when playing on the national stage.
State Reverses Its Luck In SEC Openers…
With their win in Knoxville on Friday, the Bulldogs reversed some long-time bad luck when it came to SEC openers. The win was the first by State in an SEC opener since defeating Ole Miss, 3-0, in 2006. The victory also marked the first SEC road-opening win since defeating South Carolina in straight sets in 2004.
Dogs Fall, But Find Success In Lexington…
Sunday was not as kind to Mississippi State, but it did not come without a little success for the Maroon and White. After falling in a tight first set, the Dogs took a 25-22 second set decision, marking the first time since 2011 that State had taken a set off the Wildcats. It was also the first set won by MSU in Lexington since 2007 and just the seventh in school history won by MSU at Kentucky.
MSU's Big Three…
A growing trend for MSU in recent weeks has been the presence of an offensive big three of Evie Grace Singleton, Emily Hill and Jelena Vujcin. Against the Wildcats, the trio all recorded double-digit kills, marking the third-straight contest of accomplishing the feat. The three lead MSU on the year in kills, with Singleton topping the team with 249 and Hill (178) and Vujcin (146) following close behind.
Bulldog Block Party…
State's blocking game continues to be its strong point as the team gets SEC play going. MSU leads the SEC in total blocks with 143.5 and stands 27th in the nation. The total is the most by a Bulldog squad in the first 16 matches of the season in more than a decade.
Leading the way is senior Jazmyne Johnson, whose 73 total blocks. That is the most blocks by a Bulldog in the first 16 matches of the season since Ashley Newsome recorded 74 in the first 16 contests of 2010.
Harris Closing In On Digs Record…
Junior Payton Harris now stands at 1,375 digs for her career and continues to make strides up the MSU record book. She currently holds fourth place on the school's career digs list, passing Shauna Owens (1988-91) on Sunday. Melissa Kariker (1993-96) holds the school record with 1,707.
Duzenack Also Moving Up The Record Books…
Freshman Riley Duzenack has already started making a name for herself at the setter position for the Bulldogs. Through five weekends of play, Duzenack has amassed 289 assists, placing her sixth in the MSU freshman record book.
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."
Weekend Recap…
The Bulldogs split a pair of matches to open up the 2016 SEC slate last weekend. MSU downed Tennessee in straight sets on Friday night in Knoxville, winning an SEC opener for the first time since 2006. The Dogs then traveled to Lexington to face the Kentucky Wildcats and pushed the match to four sets, but fell in a heartbreaker, 3-1.
Friday, Sept. 23
Mississippi State def. Tennessee, 3-0 (26-24, 25-23, 25-22)
Sunday, Sept. 25
Kentucky def. Mississippi State, 3-1 (25-21, 22-25, 25-14, 26-24)
Up Next…
Mississippi State will welcome Auburn and Alabama to The Griss this weekend as the Dogs open up 2016 home SEC play. MSU is 20-37 all time against the Tigers, including a 11-15 record in Starkville. State will look to avenge a five-set loss at home last year to AU and snap the Tigers six-match winning streak. Alabama holds a 44-16 advantage against MSU and have won the last five meetings, including a 3-1 decision last year in Tuscaloosa. This will be UA's first trip to Starkville since 2013.
Friday, Sept. 30
Mississippi State (9-7, 1-1 SEC) vs. Auburn (7-8, 1-1 SEC) – 7 p.m. CT
SEC Network +
Starkville, Miss.
Newell-Grissom Building
Sunday, Oct. 2
Mississippi State (8-6, 0-0 SEC) vs. Alabama (12-3, 1-1 SEC) – 3 p.m. CT
SEC Network
Starkville, Miss.
Newell-Grissom Building
Bulldogs In The SEC & NCAA Statistical Standings…
| TEAM | |||
| Category | Stat | SEC Rank | NCAA Ranks |
| Total Aces | 94 | 1st | 25th |
| Total Blocks | 143.5 | 1st | 27th |
| Total Assists | 769 | 2nd | 15th |
| Total Kills | 825 | 2nd | 16th |
| Total Attacks | 1,833 | 3rd | 65th |
| Aces Per Set | 1.47 | 5th | 71st |
| Total Digs | 788 | 5th | 151st |
| INDIVIDUAL | |||
| Category | Stat | SEC Rank | NCAA Ranks |
| Jazmyne Johnson | |||
| Total Blocks | 73 | 2nd | 20th |
| Blocks Per Set | 1.16 | 6th | 100th |
| Evie Grace Singleton | |||
| Total Aces | 28 | 2nd | 8th |
| Total Points | 289.5 | 2nd | 11th |
| Total Attacks | 677 | 2nd | 16th |
| Total Kills | 249 | 2nd | 20th |
| Points Per Set | 4.52 | 3rd | 53rd |
| Attacks Per Set | 10.58 | 3rd | 63rd |
| Aces Per Set | 0.44 | 4th | 37th |
| Kills Per Set | 3.89 | 6th | 63rd |
Leading The Bulldogs…
Kills: Evie Grace Singleton, 249
Assists: Blossom Sato, 409
Aces: Evie Grace Singleton, 28
Digs: Payton Harris, 206
Blocks: Jazmyne Johnson, 73
Points: Evie Grace Singleton, 289.5
Maroon And White To Make First National TV Appearance Of 2016…
Sunday's contest will be the first time this year that the Bulldogs will take to the national stage, as they will face off against Alabama on SEC Network. MSU was 3-2 last season when playing on the national stage.
State Reverses Its Luck In SEC Openers…
With their win in Knoxville on Friday, the Bulldogs reversed some long-time bad luck when it came to SEC openers. The win was the first by State in an SEC opener since defeating Ole Miss, 3-0, in 2006. The victory also marked the first SEC road-opening win since defeating South Carolina in straight sets in 2004.
Dogs Fall, But Find Success In Lexington…
Sunday was not as kind to Mississippi State, but it did not come without a little success for the Maroon and White. After falling in a tight first set, the Dogs took a 25-22 second set decision, marking the first time since 2011 that State had taken a set off the Wildcats. It was also the first set won by MSU in Lexington since 2007 and just the seventh in school history won by MSU at Kentucky.
MSU's Big Three…
A growing trend for MSU in recent weeks has been the presence of an offensive big three of Evie Grace Singleton, Emily Hill and Jelena Vujcin. Against the Wildcats, the trio all recorded double-digit kills, marking the third-straight contest of accomplishing the feat. The three lead MSU on the year in kills, with Singleton topping the team with 249 and Hill (178) and Vujcin (146) following close behind.
Bulldog Block Party…
State's blocking game continues to be its strong point as the team gets SEC play going. MSU leads the SEC in total blocks with 143.5 and stands 27th in the nation. The total is the most by a Bulldog squad in the first 16 matches of the season in more than a decade.
Leading the way is senior Jazmyne Johnson, whose 73 total blocks. That is the most blocks by a Bulldog in the first 16 matches of the season since Ashley Newsome recorded 74 in the first 16 contests of 2010.
Harris Closing In On Digs Record…
Junior Payton Harris now stands at 1,375 digs for her career and continues to make strides up the MSU record book. She currently holds fourth place on the school's career digs list, passing Shauna Owens (1988-91) on Sunday. Melissa Kariker (1993-96) holds the school record with 1,707.
Duzenack Also Moving Up The Record Books…
Freshman Riley Duzenack has already started making a name for herself at the setter position for the Bulldogs. Through five weekends of play, Duzenack has amassed 289 assists, placing her sixth in the MSU freshman record book.
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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