STARKVILLE, Miss. – The Jackson State volleyball team took on two top tier volleyball programs in all of college athletics today in the form of Mississippi State and UAB.
In game one for the Tigers, one that was broadcasted nationally on the SEC Network, the Blue and White got off to a slow start, having to adjust to a different environment and tougher competition, but that adjustment period did not take long as JSU handled its own in sets two and three.
The Lady Bulldogs took care of business in set one, winning 25-7 with ease, but came out a little shell shocked in set two as JSU came back with a fight of their own. After falling by a deficit of 18 points in set one, the Lady Tigers found themselves down four points, 14-10, midway through the second set of the match.
While the Bulldogs had the upper hand, the Tigers continued to battle, getting kills and keeping themselves in the match. At the end of the second set, it was not the outcome the Tigers wanted but it was a much better showing against an inferior opponent as they kept it close by a final of 25-18 in set two.
Trailing 11-6 in set three, an attacking error by the Bulldogs and three kills by
Kanile'a Nomura,
Madison Wolf, and
Kaiya Wall led to four straight points for JSU as they suddenly found a new burst of energy only trailing 11-10.
The momentum while it was short lived quickly swung back in the direction of the Bulldogs as Mississippi State went on a 4-1 run over the next couple points to take a 15-11 lead before pushing it out to a seven-point advantage, 20-13.
The Tigers went on the fall in the set 25-16 and 3-0 overall in the match, but the grit and competitiveness of the Tigers showed on national TV as they hung in with a team Mississippi State team that now improves to 9-1 overall on the season and competes in one of the toughest leagues in all of college athletics.
The Tigers took what momentum they gained against Mississippi State into the game with UAB in which they competed at a high level with the Blazers. In set one the Lady Tigers fell 25-19.
Jylen Whitten, who finished with 11 kills against the Bulldogs, was a force against the Blazers, finishing with 18 total kills in the match. In set two, JSU came within a few points of tying the match up at one-one yet came up short, 25-23 to fall to 2-0 in the match.
The Blue and White got their spark in set three, jumping out an early lead and finishing the set by handing the Blazers a 25-22 loss to bring the match to 2-1. They continued to compete into the fourth set, but were unable to tie the contest up as JSU fell 25-21 in a close attempt to knock off UAB.
The Blazers went on the defeat JSU 3-1 in game two for the Tigers. Jackson State gets a chance tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. against North Florida in the final game of the Hail State Invitational that the Lady Tigers will play.
STATS
GAME ONE
STATS
GAME TWO
| Kills |
Jylen Whitten (18), Kanile'a Nomura (7),Camry Dabney (7) |
| Aces |
Alexandra Burney (1), DeKyra Dennis (1), Jylen Whitten (1) |
| Blocks |
Taila Gaines (4), Madison Wolf (3), Kanile'a Nomura (2) |
| Assists |
Damassy Thompson (19), DeKyra Dennis (16), Alana Washington (10) |
| Digs |
DeKyra Dennis (15), Alana Washington (12), Jylen Whitten (9) |
SOCIAL MEDIA
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