The Mississippi State volleyball Bulldogs opened up their SEC schedule with a winless weekend, along with an unexpected interruption.
The Lady Dawgs lost a 3-1 decision to No. 6 Florida (10-1, 0-0 SEC) and dueled to a tie against Georgia (5-5, 0-0 SEC), before the game was cancelled due to tornado warnings.
SUNDAY: VS GEORGIA
Seeking revenge for the football team’s loss against UGA Saturday, the Lady Bulldogs hoped to overcome Georgia en route to their first SEC win of the 2005 campaign.
On a morning gray with stormy weather from Tropical Storm Rita, MSU completely dismantled Georgia in the opening game, jumping out to a 6-0 lead, and winning 30-22. MSU hit at a .438 clip in game one, but UGA bounced back in game two, taking it 30-27.
With the match tied 1-1, and the third game tied 3-3, Rachel Cooper was ready to serve for MSU. She tossed the ball into the air, but the madness of the day began at that point. The power in Newell-Grissom went out, and the game officials called a pause to the game.
What was originally thought of as a power outage became known as a tornado warning. The players, coaches, officials and fans were escorted into the tunnels and locker rooms of the Newell-Grissom Building.
After the warnings expired, spectators were released, and it was announced that the game had been cancelled for the day.
MSU officials are awaiting news from the Southeastern Conference regarding the possibility of completion of the game but first priority is certainly safety and security of players, coaches and officials.
“I feel it will be finished,” said Joe Dier, MSU volleyball sports information director. “They (the SEC) haven’t made a ruling on it yet.”
Newell-Grissom withstood no damage from the storm.
The game against Georgia has been postponed until further notice, with the match deadlocked at 1-1, 3-3 in the third game.
FRIDAY: VS No. 6 FLORIDA
Mississippi State came out with an underdog passion against the heavily-favored Florida Gators, stealing the first game of the match 30-27 before a crowd of 265 at the Newell-Grissom Building.
Coach Tina Seals is thankful for the fan support.
“The crowd really got into the game, and we really appreciate the audience’s attendance,” she said.
This was the first game since 1989 that the Bulldogs have won over UF, only the third all-time, and it seemed the Bulldogs had a chance to upset the Gators.
Orshi Kriegel led the Bulldogs with nine kills in game one, and Rachel Cooper had six. Florida began to take control of the match in game two, holding MSU to a total of 11 kills. Florida won game two 30-17 and nearly matched that performance in game three, defeating the Bulldogs 30-19.
The VolleyDawgs rallied in game four and held the lead for most of the period, with help from Orshi Kriegel’s seven kills.
The Gators proved why they were ranked sixth in the nation, however, and battled back to defeat the Bulldogs in game four 30-26, winning the match 3-1. The loss to Florida makes State’s all-time record against the Gators 0-27.
Freshman middle blocker Taylor Noland was redshirted last year due to an ankle injury, and saw her first playing time as a college player against the Gators.
“This was probably the greatest challenge I ever could have had,” Noland said, “But I wouldn’t have had it any other way. The better the competition, the better we play.”
“Anytime you have depth in positions makes it easier on the coaching staff,” Seals said. “We’ve got three good middle blockers. Every now and then, somebody’s not going to have a good game. It’s wonderful to be able to have a third person, no matter who it would be. Taylor coming back from her injury is really great.”