St. Louis is a root city for the Mississippi State volleyball team. Four MSU players have found their way to Starkville from the area, and three of them are seniors. Two of those seniors have been Lady Bulldogs since their freshman year, and one of those two players has been a constantly healthy contributor to the volleyball program in all four years she has been a Bulldog.
Jamie Joyner started in all four of her high school years at Mehlville High School. She also played club volleyball for four years with St. Louis Catholic Youth Council and was part of the team that won a national championship with that club.
Joyner arrived at MSU in 2004. She earned a start in 18 of the Bulldogs’ 29 matches, and finished third on the club with 189 kills.
She was named to the 2004 SEC Volleyball Freshman Academic Honor Roll.
As a sophomore, Joyner played in 98 of 99 games and in all 27 matches. She started 13 matches on the season, and once again ranked third on the team with 219 kills.
She earned her first all-tournament team honor at the MSU/Microtel Classic after she piled up 33 kills over three matches.
Last season, Joyner started in all 30 matches and was one of two players to see action in all 103 games played.
She finished with a career-best 243 kills, and also notched her first career double-double that season.
“Since her freshman year, I’ve seen [Joyner] be able to take control of the ball when it comes to her much better than she did then,” MSU head coach Tina Seals said. “Being able to take the ball, even with a bad set sometimes, and placing it where she wants to is a great asset to have and she has that now.”
Joyner currently leads the Bulldog roster through 12 matches with 159 kills as an opposite hitter, hitting on an impressive .302 average. The single-season attack percentage record stands at .345, and the career record is set at .279. Joyner’s career percentage is currently .219.
Joyner’s senior class is unique in the fact that their first season was 2004, which also happens to be the year Seals took over as head coach of the program.
“It’s very rewarding to know that we’ve made it this far,” Joyner said. “It’s exciting but sad at the same time. Just the fact that we all started out together, with the same goals and missions, has been an honor.”
Joyner said she has seen the team undergo quite an evolution with Seals at the helm.
“This is a very different team than what I came into,” Joyner said. “The team had great tradition and methods, but the way Coach Seals runs the team and sets goals is just amazing. The team has absolutely changed for the better since she’s been here.”
Coach Seals recalled what this senior class, composed of Joyner, Erin Seago, Eva Kriegel, Megan Lukasek and transfer Lauren Kowal was like three years ago.
“We didn’t come in as the most athletic class in the SEC,” Seals said, “but we definitely had the most heart. They’ve worked to change the image of this program, and they’ve done that. They have laid a good foundation for future teams to build on.”
On a team full of nine freshmen and sophomores, upper-class leadership is required, and that’s a pressure Joyner has felt.
She has been the only senior to emerge from pre-season practice physically unscathed and has helped carry the team through its first 11 matches.
“The season didn’t start the way we expected,” Joyner said, “but we took everything in stride. We worked out the problems one at a time, and because the freshmen have stepped up and taken a role in our game, things have worked out. I guess there was a little pressure on me, but even the girls who couldn’t play still did their part by coaching and being verbal, helping the freshman.”
Joyner’s leadership doesn’t go unnoticed, either, even though Seals recognizes that different styles of leadership emerge from several different players on the roster.
“Jamie is a leader by example,” Seals said. “On the court, she’s always a solid player. She’s not a bossy player. That’s not her style. Instead, she leads by example, and what you see is always what you get with Jamie.”
Seals said a strenght of Joyner’s is that she is a team player.
“I’m just happy to have her on my team. Not every coach has a player like her,” she said. “She’s concerned for the well-being of the team overall, and her stats end up shining for it.