Offense Powers Volleyball to Victory as Bulldogs Clinch Series Sweep

Friday, February 12

Starkville

12:00 PM

Mississippi State

4-8,4-8SEC

Ole Miss

0-12,0-12SEC

Ole Miss

Mississippi St.

Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics

Offense Powers Volleyball to Victory as Bulldogs Clinch Series Sweep

February 12, 2021 | Volleyball

Box Score

By: Austin Coats, Graduate Assistant/Communications

STARKVILLE – For the second straight day, Magnolia State native Callie Minshew had the final say in a Mississippi State volleyball win over Ole Miss.

After her back-to-back aces closed out a straight set win on Thursday (Feb. 11), Minshew's seventh kill Friday clinched State's 3-1 victory against the Rebels on Friday (Feb. 12) in the Newell-Grissom Building. With the win, the Bulldogs (4-8, 4-8 SEC) swept the season series against Ole Miss (0-12, 0-12 SEC) for the first time since 2015.

"It was another gutsy, gritty performance from our team today," MSU volleyball head coach Julie Darty Dennis said. "It took every single one of our girls, both those on the court and those on the bench giving positive encouragement and feedback, to pull out that win."

State had its cleanest offensive performance of the season, attacking at a season-best .290 average that bested the mark it set the day before (.252). Junior Gabby Waden once again led the way, tallying a match-high 17 kills on a .333 hitting percentage. Sophomore Lauren Myrick hit .538, downing seven kills without an error.

"Overall, I think we still have a lot of work to do with our serve and pass game, but when we focus on it and it gets better our numbers are pretty fantastic," Darty Dennis said. "It was awesome to see Gabby [Waden] lead us again, but for Lauren Myrick to come in and hit with those numbers it shows that she is definitely an offensive threat."

State had to come back from a 1-0 deficit as Ole Miss snuck away with a close first set. The Bulldogs answered the bell, winning the next three. Each of the final two sets were decided in extra points, 26-24.

"Ole Miss came out with fire," Darty Dennis said. "We excepted nothing less, but in that first set I give tons of credit to them. They had a really good game plan and they played good, clean volleyball. You can definitely tell that they're moving in the right direction.

"We're growing, and it feels good to see our group take steps in the right direction. Again, I'm super proud of my team. Winning at home against your in-state rival feels really good. I'm just super proud of the kids, and we're excited about this spring season."

Match Notes

Mississippi State completed its second series sweep of an SEC opponent (No. 7 Texas A&M & Ole Miss) for the first since 2015 (Ole Miss & Georgia).
The Bulldogs hold consecutive wins over Ole Miss for the first time since a three-match streak between the 2015-16 seasons.
MSU posted its best hitting percentage (.290) of the season and the program's best mark in SEC play since it averaged a .323 clip against Georgia on November 26, 2016.
Gabby Waden posted 31 kills over seven sets (4.43 per set) this week on a .348 hitting percentage. She has tallied double-digit kills in 11 of 12 matches this season and all four matches this spring.
With four blocks on Friday, Jessica Kemp extended her streak of matches with three or more blocks to five.
With 46 assists this week, Gabby Coulter is 12 assists away from reaching the 1,500 career assists milestone.

First Set (Ole Miss 25, Mississippi State 22)

Ole Miss got the better end of a back-and-forth opening set. Both teams had multiple significant runs, but it was a four-point streak to make it 21-19 that put the Rebels up for good. State pulled within one on a kill by Myrick, but Ole Miss replied with a kill by Samantha Schnitta before a Bulldog attack error closed the frame.

Second Set (Mississippi State 25, Ole Miss 23)

Two early runs had Ole Miss on track to go up 2-0, but the Bulldogs fought back with consistent pressure. After Logan Brown tied it at 22-22 with a kill, a Rebel attack error gave State its first lead in the set since the 4-3 mark. Schnitta re-tied it for Ole Miss, but the Rebels committed back-to-back errors behind it to gift State the set.

Third Set (Mississippi State 26, Ole Miss 24)

A strong attack carried the Bulldogs through extra points to a 26-24 third set victory. State hit .415 as a group, led by Waden's seven kills (.583) without an error. The Bulldogs led for most of the set, but the Rebels kept it close throughout, and back-to-back kills pulled them square at 23-23. Minshew set up set point with a kill, followed by a reply by Ole Miss' Sultemeier to necessitate extra points. Waden delivered her seventh kill of the set to go ahead 25-24, then Minshew followed with a kill of her own to win the frame.

Fourth Set (Mississippi State 26, Ole Miss 24)

Waden added six more kills and Brown and Lilly Gunter each had five digs to help give State the edge in extra points. Trailing for most of the set, Waden tied it late at 23-23 after an Ole Miss error. Another Rebel error set up match point, but Brown hit the net with the subsequent service. Waden made up for it on the next point, killing her final ball of the match, before Minshew delivered a strike off the hands of a Rebel defender. State hit .308 in the final frame.

Up Next
MSU's home stand resumes next Friday and Saturday (Feb. 19-20) when it hosts No. 9 Florida at the Newell-Grissom Building. First serve is set for 6 p.m. CT for both matches, and fans can watch the contests on the SEC Network+ digital platform.

For more information on the Bulldogs, follow the program on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching @HailStateVB.