An authoritative attack from the Alabama Crimson Tide forced Mississippi State volleyball to split decisions over a weekend that featured many milestones and smoldering heat and humidity in the non-air-conditioned Newell-Grissom building. Erin Heffner notched match-highs with 23 kills and 14 digs, while Jennifer Bibber and Erin Price surged the Tide attack with 17 and 10 respective kills to deliver head coach Judy Green’s 500th career win.
Alabama broke a 17-17 tie in Game 1 to eventually prevail 30-25. State fought back in Game 2, out-hitting the Tide .289 to .229 and posting a 30-24 win. The teams fought neck and neck in a crucial Game 3 before Alabama capitalized on a couple of mental mistakes by the Bulldogs down the stretch and nipped the ‘Dawgs 30-28. Alabama flowed on the momentum in the match finale and hit .414 to drop the ‘Dawgs 30-22.
“We knew they’d (U of A) be tough and explosive on the outside,” said MSU head coach Brenda Bowlin. “We needed to contain the outside and win in the middle. We played competitively but were unable to turn it up when we needed it.”
Bulldog senior Misty Hubenthal notched her 1,000th career kill and 100th career ace in Sunday’s match.
“It was a goal for the weekend,” said Hubenthal. “It was exciting to reach both (milestones) in the same game. I just wish we had won.”
Hilary Chambers attacked from the middle for the Bulldogs with an assassin like accuracy (.565). Chambers registered 13 kills and made no errors.
“The sets from Jennifer Hadden were on the money and the passes to her were good,” said Chambers. “You must have good passes to set up the quick hit.”
In Friday night’s match with the Auburn Tigers, Mississippi State snapped a season-high, three-match losing streak with a 3-0 win. The win also shattered a 12-match losing streak in the month of October that dated back to the year 2000.
Hubenthal commanded the Bulldog attack, posting her 10th double-double of the season with 16 kills and 12 digs.
“We came in pretty confident against Auburn,” said Hubenthal. “They had lost some players and have a new coach. They are still adjusting.”
Nicole Broome came off the bench and drove home 11 kills and committed just three errors. “I couldn’t have done it without good sets,” said Broome, who hit .348.
“Nicole gave us an aggressive spark, but the key tonight was balance,” said Bowlin.
Chambers added nine kills and hit .438, while Jennifer Rousey and Rachel Cooper tallied eight and seven respectively for the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Hadden led MSU with a match-high five aces and delivered quality sets despite a jammed left thumb, and a battle with the humidity to keep her hands dry enough to control the ball.
“I am trying to be more aggressive with my serve,” said Hadden. “The heat and humidity kept my hands wet, but I had really good passes from our receivers.”
Tanika Taylor maintained the defense with a 16-dig performance in her second match at the libero position.
“I’ve been taking extra reps in practice, and it has helped,” said Taylor.
Cooper added 10 digs of her own to balance the defensive effort.
“We slipped a little but regained focus really well considering all of the towel timeouts,” said Bowlin, whose Bulldogs now hit the road for a Friday match at No. 3 Florida, and a Sunday showdown with Georgia.