Riley ComdenThe Ole Miss volleyball team will travel to Starkville on Thursday, Feb. 11, to take on in-state rivals, the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Ole Miss is still looking for its first victory of the season, as the Rebels are currently on a 10-game losing streak. Meanwhile, the Mississippi State Bulldogs haven’t been faring much better in the 2021 spring season. They tally two wins on the season, which puts them at 2-8.
The Rebels are coming off of a tough loss to Alabama after battling all five sets in both games. Freshman Samantha Schnitta recorded her second career double-double with 18 kills and 10 digs in their Friday game against the Tide on Feb. 5. Freshman GG Carvacho followed closely behind with 16 kills and four added blocks. During the Saturday matchup, sophomore Anna Bair led the Rebels with 21 kills. Freshman Sasha Ratliff also had 15 kills and nine big blocks during the game.
Meanwhile, Mississippi State is coming off of a weekend losing sweep to the South Carolina Gamecocks, going only three sets in the first matchup and then battling through five in the second during the Saturday matchup. In the Friday game, junior Gabby Waden led the Bulldogs with 11 kills, followed by redshirt junior Logan Brown with eight. On Saturday, Wadden led with 19 kills, and Brown trailed behind with 13.
Ole Miss will need to focus on locking down Wadden and Brown if they wish to shut down the Bulldogs and claim its first, much-needed win of the season.
The Rebels must come out strong with a lot of energy and hold on to that energy through every single point in order to win. This game will come down to which team does the small things right and who plays with more grit.
The Rebels will look for Schnitta to perform well at the net, to put up a large number of kills and to serve well. Junior Aubrey Sultemeier, freshman Payton Brgoch and Ratliff will be key players for the Rebels up at the net for shutting down the Bulldogs’ Wadden and Brown.
The Rebels will take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Friday at 12 p.m., as the search for a team win is still on. The game will be shown on the SEC Network+.
