Mississippi State’s volleyball program notched its second 2-1 weekend Friday and Saturday in Memphis.The Bulldogs (5-4) were able to nab two straight wins over Nicholls State and Austin Peay in the Memphis Invitational, but fell to host-team Memphis in the tournament finale.
“I thought we played extremely well in the first two matches,” MSU head coach Tina Seals said. “We had a good overall team effort. Anytime we lose, but we learn from our mistakes, we can consider it a success.”
The Lady Bulldogs blanked the Colonels of Nicholls State 3-0 in games of 30-21, 30-23, and 30-19 Friday to earn their fourth win of the season.
With the win, Seals also earned her 50th victory while coaching for the Maroon and White.
Senior opposite hitter Jamie Joyner led the Bulldogs offensively with 15 kills. As a whole, MSU hit at a season-best .318 clip.
Saturday brought another doubleheader onto Mississippi State’s volleyball plate.
The first match of Saturday pitted MSU against Austin Peay, whom the Dawgs defeated with another score of 3-0.
MSU defeated the Lady Governors in scores of 30-24, 30-22, and 30-20 to earn its sixth win of the season.
Junior outside hitter Cristina Jucan paced the Bulldogs in the match against Austin Peay, chalking up 14 kills on the outing. Joyner closely followed with 11 kills.
In Saturday night’s game, the Bulldogs fell to Memphis in five games, exchanging wins back-and-forth throughout the entire match. MSU lost in games of 30-27, 18-30, 31-29, 20-30 and 12-15.
“Right now we’re struggling with fatigue because we had so many players miss a lot of practices in the preseason,” Seals said. “We’re not in good enough condition to play two matches in one day. We’re probably operating around 75 percent right now as a team due to all of our injuries. We’re just learning how to deal with that, and how to play our best even with the injuries.”
Joyner led the Bulldogs once again offensively in the exhausting five-game contest, totaling 17 kills and 12 digs, earning her first double-double of the season. Senior setter Eva Kriegel added 15 kills of her own, and hit at a team-best .481 hitting percentage.
Joyner was named to the Memphis Invitational All-Tournament Team, making for her third All-Tournament recognition in as many weekends.
The Bulldogs open Southeastern Conference play Friday and Sunday as the team’s first conference road trip will lead them to face off against SEC East foes Kentucky and Tennessee.
“I definitely think we’ve played in stronger tournaments than we have in the past,” Seals said. “The teams we played are ranked near where we’re ranked. I think we’re prepared to play in the SEC, we just need to figure out how to keep our intensity up. I saw improvement in that area in the Memphis match, we just fell a little short.