The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Kick Off Home Weekend With Mississippi State On Friday
10/9/2008 | Volleyball
OXFORD, Miss. Ole Miss (7-7, 3-2 SEC) returns home to host in-state rival Mississippi State (6-10, 1-4 SEC) on Friday night to kick off a weekend that will see the Rebels face two Western Division Rivals.
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“It’s a rivalry match so you can throw the records out,” said Ole Miss head coach Joe Getzin. “We are going to have to come out and play at the top of our game. Coach Seals always has her team prepared to play.”
The Rebels are led by a group of young faces this season as freshmen Katie Norris averages a team-best 2.88 kills per set and freshman middle blocker Regina Thomas is right behind her with 2.46 kills per set. Thomas is also the team’s top blocker with almost a block per set.
Sophomore middle blocker Miranda Kitts is also putting up solid numbers for the Rebels as she is averaging 1.66 kills per set and is putting down close to a block per set with Thomas. The sophomore was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week on September 29, and is the only non-libero to earn the honor this season.
Leading the back row defense of the Rebels is senior Allison Weber, who is off a career-high 23 dig performance at Georgia this past weekend.
The Bulldogs of Mississippi State enter the weekend coming off a pair of losses to Florida and South Carolina, leaving the Bulldogs with an overall record of 6-10 and a 1-4 mark in the Southeastern Conference. The lone win came over Auburn.
Mississippi State is led by Ioana Demian who averages 2.83 kills a set and Christina Jucan with 2.69 kills per set. The Bulldogs average 10 kills per set as a team. Ashley Newsome is a defensive force that generates offense for the Bulldogs as she averages 1.04 blocks per set.
The Bulldogs run a 6-2 offense with Dorey Gray and Grace Hoyt setting the offense. Gray averages 5.60 assists per set, while Hoyt averages 5.30 assists per set. Defensively, the Bulldogs are led by Kayla Woodard, who averages 2.73 digs per set.
Ole Miss and Mississippi State have faced off 69 times with the Rebels holding a 53-16 advantage in the all-time series.The Rebels and Bulldogs split the season series in 2007 with the home team winning each match.
