AUBURN, Ala. – Behind a record-setting crowd at Auburn Arena, the Auburn volleyball team (6-15, 0-10 SEC) dropped a hard-fought SEC contest versus Mississippi State, 3-0 (25-27, 21-25, 22-25), Friday.
A program-record 2,492 fans witnessed the back-and-forth contest, breaking the previous record of 2,474 set against Arkansas on Nov. 7, 2014.
The duo of freshman Lily Thomason and sophomore Tatum Shipes led the Tigers with 10 kills apiece. Junior Chesney McClellan finished the match with nine kills. Senior Shaina White closed the match with a season-high .400 hitting percentage, adding eight kills. Junior Morgan Kull paced the way with 28 assists, while sophomore Marissa Hines added 10.
Defensively, sophomore Bella Rosenthall totaled 20 digs. The Tigers recorded four blocks in the contest.
Mississippi State (13-10, 2-9 SEC) was led by Amarrah Cooks, who totaled eight kills in the match. Alleah Stamatis recorded 28 assists for the Bulldogs. Kanani Price led State defensively with 15 digs.
Auburn hits the road on Wednesday, traveling to Baton Rouge, La., to face LSU. First serve on the SEC Network is set for 7 p.m. CT.
SET ONE
The two squads kept it close in the opening set, recording five lead changes and 11 total ties. The Bulldogs chipped out a three-point advantage heading into the media break, 15-12, but the Tigers battled back with four straight points out of the timeout to regain the lead. The two squads would keep the match tight down the homestretch, exchanging service errors to lock the set up at 25-all to force extra points. Mississippi State answered with two late kills to take the opening stanza, 27-25.
SET TWO
Mississippi State jumped out early, building up a 21-12 lead. The Tigers stormed back with help of a 7-0 run to silence State and pull within one, 20-21. Auburn was able to fight off a set point, but a kill from Callie Minshew secured set two for the Bulldogs, 25-21.
SET THREE
With the set tied 3-all, Mississippi State used a 3-0 run to take a lead that it would never give up. Auburn battled throughout the match, fighting off two match points, but the Bulldogs took the final set, 25-22.