Troy University Athletics
Troy Falls To Mississippi State
8/30/2008 5:00:00 AM | Volleyball
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The Troy Trojans vollyeball team fell to Mississippi State University, 3-0 (24-26, 21-25, 22-25), in their second match of the MSU Classic Saturday morning.
Troy (0-2) fell behind to start the match, but built an early 12-6 lead in the opening game. Freshman Laura Mackley served up three consecutive points off her serve due in large part to a pair of kills by Meghan Gilroy off sets from Mackley and Megan Henderson. The freshman also contributed a service ace during the three-point run for the Trojans, which gave the Trojans a 4-2 lead.. The two teams traded points until the Trojans scored three consecutive points, pushing the lead to 8-3. That lead grew to 12-6 before Mississippi State rallied back to tie the opening game at 12-12 midway through the game.
The two teams traded points throughout the first game, until Mississippi State took a 21-18 lead. The Trojans battled back, getting a pair of kills from Aubre Smith and service ace from Meghan Washlow to tie the match at 21-21. The two teams again traded points, until the match was knotted at 24 and the Bulldogs scored the remaining two points on service.
In the second game of the match, the Trojans started again with a 4-1 lead by scoring the first three points of the game. Mackley added a kill, as did Kerry Heinz en route to the early lead for the Trojans. The lead grew to 11-6 midway through the game, and the Trojans held the lead until Mississippi State was able to tie the game at 18-18. From that point, the teams traded points until Mississippi State was able to pull ahead 21-19 and go on to win the second game of the match.
In the final game, the Trojans fell behind early by as many as eight points but were able to fight their way back into the game. Troy was able to pull within a single point at 17-16 on a kill by Heinz off a set by Henderson. After falling behind 20-17, the Trojans climbed back into the game at 21-19 behind the service of Washlow. Unfortunately Mississippi State (2-0) scored four of the next seven points to win the match.
Gilroy finished the match with 11 kills on 19 attempts for a .579 attack percentage in the morning session. Smith added 10 kills on 21 attempts for a .333 attack percentage. Henderson added 24 assists, while Washlow added 10 digs and Emily Strader seven.
Cristina Jucan led Mississippi State with 15 kills, while Ioana Demian added 13. Dorey Gray contributed 33 assists in the Bulldogs' victory.
Troy wraps up play against Arkansas-Pine Bluff today at 4:30 in the MSU Classic.
