The Mississippi State Unieristy volleyball team continued their 2015 campaign last weekend in the Maroon Classic. MSU volleyball went 3-0 over the weekend beating Stetson University Mississippi Valley State, and the University of Chattanooga.
MSU faced off against the Stetson Hatters on Friday. The Bulldogs swept Stetson in three tightly contested games. While MSU’s victory over Stetson was a strong win, the real significance is that it was head coach David McFatrich’s 100th career win.
The huge milestone came in coach McFatrich’s fifth season. His overall record is now 102-37.
“It’s more a reflection on the players I’ve had,” McFatrich said on his 100th career win. “I’m glad that it came here at Mississippi State.”
On Saturday morning, MSU dominated MVSU, winning the first set 25-9, the second 25-2 and then the third 25-16. The Bulldogs were able to play 14 players, letting multiple backups get valuable experience.
On Saturday afternoon, MSU found themselves down a set for the first time in the Maroon Classic. MSU fell to Chattanooga 23-25 in the first set. However, the Bulldogs would rally to take all three of the following sets.
“In the first set we came out a little tentative,” sophomore Peyton Harris said. “In the second set we started to get in a groove, and coming out in third set we knew we were going to win that game.”
During the weekend, Alex Warren once again led MSU on offense. Warren, a senior, had 36 kills in the Classic. On defense, Peyton Harris led the Bulldogs with 52 digs, amassing 33 in the match against Chattanooga alone.
“It was just a team effort,” Warren said. “For the first time, I just felt we were in a groove.”
MSU will travel next weekend to South Bend, Indiana, for the Golden Dome Invitational. They are facing big programs such as Notre Dame, Penn State and Eastern Kentucky. The next home game will be against South Carolina on Oct. 4th.
“Every team is a new team,” Harris said on carrying momentum forward. “We will give every team a run for their money, they will remember who we are.”
