On Friday, Sept. 5, the Ole Miss Volleyball team traveled to Brookings, S.D., for the South Dakota State University Invitational. They faced South Dakota and Wyoming.
The Lady Rebels were swept 3-0 in sets, dropping their overall record to 2-2. Junior Gabi Placide finished with 12 kills and three blocks.
In the first set, kills by Placide and junior Tessa Jones gave Ole Miss a 5-4 lead, but South Dakota State responded with a 5-0 run. The Lady Rebels kept fighting: They took advantage of Jackrabbit errors, and a combined block by Placide and Jones trimmed the South Dakota State lead to just one.
But the Jackrabbits scored three points straight and pulled away in the set, winning 25-20. They did not let up in the second set: The Jackrabbits built a 16-6 lead. Ole Miss rallied late, with a freshman Carly Paugh’s block and kill cutting the South Dakota State lead to six, but the Jackrabbits held on to win 25-18.
In set three, the Lady Rebels went ahead 5-2 thanks to a Placide kill and ace, but the Jackrabbits responded with a 7-1 run. The teams went back and forth, but the South Dakota State lead started to widen. Kills from Placide and junior Shayla Meyer narrowed the gap to 19-13, but despite some late kills from Jones, South Dakota State sealed the set 25-20 and won the match.
The Ole Miss Volleyball earned a dominant victory over Wyoming 3-1.
The Rebels, currently 3-2, 0-0 in SEC play, had a huge weekend, outside hitters, junior Placide and freshmen Melia Johnson had a key role in the success.
Placide with 21 kills on a .391 hitting percentage, while Johnson had a career-high 17 kills and hit .452. Setter Mokihana Tufono put together a strong double-double with 50 assists and 11 digs. On defense, senior libero/ds Cammy Niesen recorded 15 digs and freshman Cameron Bradley added 12 to her collegiate career.
The opening set turned into a battle. Johnson sparked the offense with a couple of early kills to give Ole Miss a small 10-9 lead. The Cowgirls came back with four straight points, but the Rebels regrouped and took charge 15-14. In the end, Wyoming strung together a 6-1 run to take control and closed out the set 25-21.
The Rebels jumped to an 8-2 lead thanks to a pair of kills each from middle blocker Paugh and Johnson. Johnson continued to be a dominant player and recorded eight kills on her first 10 attempts.
With a 16-9 lead, Ole Miss stayed in control as freshman middle blocker Keirstyn Carlton added multiple kills not only to stretch the lead but a strong beginning to her collegiate career. Carlton capped the frame with seven kills and three blocks on .500 hitting, to guide the Rebels to a 25-16 win.
In the third, Wyoming pushed back and stormed out to a 10-4 lead. Ole Miss chipped away to close the gap at 14-12, but the Cowgirls regained control and extended their advantage to 18-13.
A Wyoming service error set up outside hitter Meyer, who sparked an 8-0 run with three aces to put Ole Miss ahead 21-18. Placide sealed it with three late kills for a 25-22 win.
The Rebels carried the momentum into the fourth to finish strong and held an 11-5 lead. Placide stayed on fire, the defense held Wyoming to -.067, and middle blocker Jones added three blocks as Ole Miss hit .393 in a 25-12 finish.
