Friday, September 7
Mobile, Ala.
9:30 AM
Mississippi State
vs
Louisiana Tech
Bulldogs Travel South to Mobile, Alabama, for the Jaguar Invitational (Sept. 7-8)
Photo by: Blake Williams/MSU Athletics
Bulldogs Travel South for Jaguar Invitational
September 06, 2018 | Volleyball
by Mary Catherine Molay, Graduate Assistant
STARKVILLE -Â After closing the Appalachian State Invitational with a victory, Mississippi State (2-5) heads to Mobile, Alabama, for its second non-conference road trip of the season.
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The Bulldogs will face Louisiana Tech (1-6) at 10 a.m. and host South Alabama (1-5) at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 7. MSU caps off the tournament against Southeastern Louisiana (1-5) on Saturday, Sept. 8 at Noon.
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"We are very excited to get another opportunity to compete and improve as a team," first-year head coach Julie Darty said. "Each time we step on the court, the focus is just about improvement. Since our first match of the season to now, we have seen improvement across the board. We keep telling the team to trust the process and not the product, but if they focus on the little things that are apart of the process the product will generally take care of itself. Â I hope that they feel that we are getting better because I honestly do think that we are a much more organized, efficient volleyball team right now.Â
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"I like what our defense is doing – I believe that we are finally getting in sync as a team, and if we keep the focus on minimizing errors and trusting our defense to convert in transition, we will continue to have a better product. I am pleased with our mentality from the service line and think we can continue to get better back there. If our middles can produce like they did last weekend, on a consistent basis, that will keep us really balanced offensively. These are three tough teams that we are going to face down in Mobile, but we are ready to compete and ready to work hard at controlling our side of the net."
Â
Mississippi State faces two opponents, Louisiana Tech and Southeastern Louisiana, for the 10th time each in program history. The Bulldogs face the Jaguars for the 13th time in program history. MSU and USA have never faced one another in Mobile. The only match that will be televised comes against host South Alabama.Â
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Jaguar Invitational Schedule
Mississippi State vs. Louisiana Tech - Friday, Sept. 7 at 10 a.m.
Mississippi State at South Alabama - Friday, Sept. 7 at 7 p.m.
Mississippi State vs. Southeastern Louisiana - Saturday, Sept. 8 at Noon
Bulldogs Face Techsters for the 10th Time in Program History ...
For the first match of the Jaguar Invitational, Mississippi State faces off against Louisiana Tech. This is the 10th meeting between the two teams as MSU holds the 9-0 advantage. At a neutral site, MSU is 3-0. The two teams met last season in Starkville on Sept. 4 where MSU won 3-0.
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Outside hitter Kaitlyn Adams tops the team ledger Louisiana Tech with 64 kills. Libero/defensive specialist Alyssa Zucco leads the team with 85 digs and setter Abigail Hildenbrand leads the team with 179 assists.Â
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MSU to Face Host South Alabama ...
MSU's second opponent in the tournament are host South Alabama Jaguars. This will mark the 13th meeting between the two teams, and the first meeting in Mobile. USA won, 3-0, during the last meeting in Starkville on Sept. 11, 2014.Â
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Middle blocker Kelley Hartman leads the team with 79 kills, .372 hitting percentage, 21 blocks and 102.5 points. Libero/defensive specialist Ashlyn Roberts has 74 digs and averages 3.22 digs per set for the Jaguars. Setter Parker Harrell has 195 assists on the season.
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Scouting the Lady Lions ...
The third and final foe of the weekend are the Southeastern Louisiana Lady Lions. This is the 10th meeting between the two teams. MSU leads the series 8-1 and is 1-0 in neutral site meetings.Â
Â
Right side hitter Elyssa Purcell leads the team with 41 kills while middle blocker Sam Gomez tops on the quad in bloks with 14.0. Defensive specialist Lexie Torres has 61 digs on the season.
Â
Murr and Zgunda "dig" it done ...
Kendall Murr has 138 digs, which puts her first in the SEC and 16th in the NCAA. The sophomore transfer also ranks second in the SEC and 45th in the NCAA with 5.11 digs per set.
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Gabby Zgunda finds herself with the second most digs on the squad at 102. The sophomore is fourth in the SEC and 87th nationally in digs.
Â
Robinson Comes Out Swinging In the Appalachian State Invitational ...
Deja Robinson held nothing back when the team was in Boone, North Carolina, for the Appalachian State invitational. The freshman from Canton, Georgia, had 42 kills on 79 attempts posing a .443 hitting percentage last weekend.Â
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Cooks Leads the Team in Five Categories
Junior transfer Amarrah Cooks leads the team in kills (69), kills per set (2.56), block solos (9), total blocks (21) and points (85.0).
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Kath earns her second double-double of the season ...Â
Senior Morgan Kath tallied 10 digs and 11 assists against Georgia State on Aug. 26 at the StarkVegas Classic. The Wisconsin native also had 10 digs and 54 assists against Clemson on Aug. 31 at the Appalachian Invitational.
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Kath gets a spot on the NCAA assists list ...Â
Senior Morgan Kath has 197 assists on the season. That places her sixth in the SEC and 109th in the nation.
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Robinson earns first SEC Freshman of the Week award since 2013 …Â
Deja Robinson was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Sept. 4 following an impressive performance at the Appalachian State Invitational where she had 4.08 points and 3.23 kills per set as well as a .443 hitting percentage. She was also named to the Appalachian State All-Tournament Team and posted a career-high 20 kills against Davidson.
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Hoosiers in StarkVegas ...
Four players on the 2018 roster hail from the state of Indiana (Gabby Zgunda, Kendall Murr, Kanani Price and Liv Benner). The Hoosier State is the most represented state on the squad.Â
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Who's Leading the Bulldogs? ...
Kills:Â Amarrah Cooks, 69
Kills Per Set:Â Amarrah Cooks, 2.56
Assists:Â Morgan Kath, 197
Service Aces:Â Gabby Zgunda, 5Â
Digs:Â Kendall Murr, 138
Block Solos:Â Amarrah Cooks, 9
Block Assists:Â Amarrah Cooks & Deja Robinson, 12
Total Blocks:Â Amarrah Cooks, 21
Points:Â Amarrah Cooks, 85.0
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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."
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STARKVILLE -Â After closing the Appalachian State Invitational with a victory, Mississippi State (2-5) heads to Mobile, Alabama, for its second non-conference road trip of the season.
Â
The Bulldogs will face Louisiana Tech (1-6) at 10 a.m. and host South Alabama (1-5) at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 7. MSU caps off the tournament against Southeastern Louisiana (1-5) on Saturday, Sept. 8 at Noon.
Â
"We are very excited to get another opportunity to compete and improve as a team," first-year head coach Julie Darty said. "Each time we step on the court, the focus is just about improvement. Since our first match of the season to now, we have seen improvement across the board. We keep telling the team to trust the process and not the product, but if they focus on the little things that are apart of the process the product will generally take care of itself. Â I hope that they feel that we are getting better because I honestly do think that we are a much more organized, efficient volleyball team right now.Â
Â
"I like what our defense is doing – I believe that we are finally getting in sync as a team, and if we keep the focus on minimizing errors and trusting our defense to convert in transition, we will continue to have a better product. I am pleased with our mentality from the service line and think we can continue to get better back there. If our middles can produce like they did last weekend, on a consistent basis, that will keep us really balanced offensively. These are three tough teams that we are going to face down in Mobile, but we are ready to compete and ready to work hard at controlling our side of the net."
Â
Mississippi State faces two opponents, Louisiana Tech and Southeastern Louisiana, for the 10th time each in program history. The Bulldogs face the Jaguars for the 13th time in program history. MSU and USA have never faced one another in Mobile. The only match that will be televised comes against host South Alabama.Â
Â
Jaguar Invitational Schedule
Mississippi State vs. Louisiana Tech - Friday, Sept. 7 at 10 a.m.
- Live Stats:Â https://hailst.at/2NdIsBa
Mississippi State at South Alabama - Friday, Sept. 7 at 7 p.m.
- Live Stats:Â https://hailst.at/2NmrdxP
- Watch:Â https://hailst.at/2MJw8cu
Mississippi State vs. Southeastern Louisiana - Saturday, Sept. 8 at Noon
- Live Stats:Â https://hailst.at/2Ni9Y0g
Bulldogs Face Techsters for the 10th Time in Program History ...
For the first match of the Jaguar Invitational, Mississippi State faces off against Louisiana Tech. This is the 10th meeting between the two teams as MSU holds the 9-0 advantage. At a neutral site, MSU is 3-0. The two teams met last season in Starkville on Sept. 4 where MSU won 3-0.
Â
Outside hitter Kaitlyn Adams tops the team ledger Louisiana Tech with 64 kills. Libero/defensive specialist Alyssa Zucco leads the team with 85 digs and setter Abigail Hildenbrand leads the team with 179 assists.Â
Â
MSU to Face Host South Alabama ...
MSU's second opponent in the tournament are host South Alabama Jaguars. This will mark the 13th meeting between the two teams, and the first meeting in Mobile. USA won, 3-0, during the last meeting in Starkville on Sept. 11, 2014.Â
Â
Middle blocker Kelley Hartman leads the team with 79 kills, .372 hitting percentage, 21 blocks and 102.5 points. Libero/defensive specialist Ashlyn Roberts has 74 digs and averages 3.22 digs per set for the Jaguars. Setter Parker Harrell has 195 assists on the season.
Â
Scouting the Lady Lions ...
The third and final foe of the weekend are the Southeastern Louisiana Lady Lions. This is the 10th meeting between the two teams. MSU leads the series 8-1 and is 1-0 in neutral site meetings.Â
Â
Right side hitter Elyssa Purcell leads the team with 41 kills while middle blocker Sam Gomez tops on the quad in bloks with 14.0. Defensive specialist Lexie Torres has 61 digs on the season.
Â
Murr and Zgunda "dig" it done ...
Kendall Murr has 138 digs, which puts her first in the SEC and 16th in the NCAA. The sophomore transfer also ranks second in the SEC and 45th in the NCAA with 5.11 digs per set.
Â
Gabby Zgunda finds herself with the second most digs on the squad at 102. The sophomore is fourth in the SEC and 87th nationally in digs.
Â
Robinson Comes Out Swinging In the Appalachian State Invitational ...
Deja Robinson held nothing back when the team was in Boone, North Carolina, for the Appalachian State invitational. The freshman from Canton, Georgia, had 42 kills on 79 attempts posing a .443 hitting percentage last weekend.Â
Â
Cooks Leads the Team in Five Categories
Junior transfer Amarrah Cooks leads the team in kills (69), kills per set (2.56), block solos (9), total blocks (21) and points (85.0).
Â
Kath earns her second double-double of the season ...Â
Senior Morgan Kath tallied 10 digs and 11 assists against Georgia State on Aug. 26 at the StarkVegas Classic. The Wisconsin native also had 10 digs and 54 assists against Clemson on Aug. 31 at the Appalachian Invitational.
Â
Kath gets a spot on the NCAA assists list ...Â
Senior Morgan Kath has 197 assists on the season. That places her sixth in the SEC and 109th in the nation.
Â
Robinson earns first SEC Freshman of the Week award since 2013 …Â
Deja Robinson was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Sept. 4 following an impressive performance at the Appalachian State Invitational where she had 4.08 points and 3.23 kills per set as well as a .443 hitting percentage. She was also named to the Appalachian State All-Tournament Team and posted a career-high 20 kills against Davidson.
Â
Hoosiers in StarkVegas ...
Four players on the 2018 roster hail from the state of Indiana (Gabby Zgunda, Kendall Murr, Kanani Price and Liv Benner). The Hoosier State is the most represented state on the squad.Â
Â
Who's Leading the Bulldogs? ...
Kills:Â Amarrah Cooks, 69
Kills Per Set:Â Amarrah Cooks, 2.56
Assists:Â Morgan Kath, 197
Service Aces:Â Gabby Zgunda, 5Â
Digs:Â Kendall Murr, 138
Block Solos:Â Amarrah Cooks, 9
Block Assists:Â Amarrah Cooks & Deja Robinson, 12
Total Blocks:Â Amarrah Cooks, 21
Points:Â Amarrah Cooks, 85.0
Â
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."
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Players Mentioned
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L/DS
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