The Mississippi State volleyball team finished another weekend on the road Friday and Sunday, earning both a win and a loss.
The Bulldogs (12-8, 3-7) played five games in each of the two matches they played this weekend.
MSU fell to Georgia Friday 3-2, while outlasting South Carolina Sunday 3-2.
MSU and Georgia went back and forth throughout the entire match, but Georgia was able to win in games of 30-20, 25-30, 30-26, 28-30 and 15-9.
The win gives Georgia its 30th win all-time in the series with MSU.
State was led by senior outside hitter Orshi Kriegel, who paced the Bulldogs with 18 kills and 19 digs.
Junior setter Eva Kriegel set career highs in Friday’s contest, earning 17 kills and 14 digs. She also contributed with 40 assists.
Cristina Jucan and Jamie Joyner also turned in double-figure kills for the night, while Megan Lukasek tied Eva Kriegel with 14 digs.
Georgia dominated MSU on the net, tallying 14 blocks to MSU’s six.
UGA also shot better than State, putting up a .266 to MSU’s .193.
MSU tied the game up with South Carolina on regional television Sunday, as they outlasted the Gamecocks 3-2.
MSU took the match in games of 27-30, 30-20, 26-30, 30-22 and 15-10.
Freshman standout Martina Gregusova led the Bulldogs on Sunday, tallying a match-high 26 kills.
She also contributed with two service aces.
“Martina had an incredible afternoon for us,” head coach Tina Seals said. “But it was a great team effort. I was especially proud of the way we fought back. Martina carried us down the stretch, and everybody seemed to rally around her.”
Orshi Kriegel pitched in with her second double-double of the weekend, putting up 18 kills and 10 digs.
Junior middle blocker Erin Seago also tallied double-digit kills with 12.
She had a .500 offensive outing, and had five blocks.
Gregusova was rivaled in the match by South Carolina standout Shonda Cole.
Cole tallied 20 kills on the afternoon on a .292 hitting performance.
Despite Cole’s outstanding showing, MSU held five South Carolina players to negative hitting percentages on the day. This gave USC a .136 mark for the match. MSU outshot them with a .260 mark of its own.
“A key factor was our ability to keep Shonda (Cole) under control,” Seals said. “She’s an amazing player.”
With the win, MSU makes the all-time series against South Carolina 17-6 in the Gamecocks’ favor.
Mississippi State continues its quest for SEC success this week as they travel to Oxford Wednesday to spar with the Ole Miss Rebels.
The Bulldogs return Sunday to host the Alabama Crimson Tide.
MSU has faced each of its weekend opponents already this season, defeating Ole Miss 3-0 and losing to Alabama 3-0.