The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
1-4
Wichita State
3-3
Rebels Fall To Wichita State To Close Out Cardinal Classic
9/4/2011 | Volleyball
Sept. 4, 2011
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Allegra Wells put down a match-high 14 kills and was one of two Rebels to notch double-digit kills on the afternoon, but the Rebels couldn't overcome a surging Shocker team as Ole miss (1-4) fell to Wichita State (3-5) by a score of 3-1 (21-25, 25-22, 17-25, 19-25) on Sunday at the Crowne Plaza Cardinal Classic.
Regina Thomas hit an efficient .444 for the match with eight kills and no errors in 18 swings to complete a solid weekend that saw the senior middle blocker earn All-Tournament honors. Junior outside hitter Whitney Craven added 11 kills on the afternoon.
Senior libero Morgan Springer came up with 25 digs, while junior setter Amanda Philpot turned in a double-double with 34 assists and 18 digs. She finished three kills shy of a triple-double, tallying seven kills and hitting .316 for the match.
"We competed well against a very good Wichita State team, we just have to continue to improve our consistency," said Ole Miss head coach Joe Getzin. "We do some really good things, but just don't have enough consistency yet. Regina continues to improve with each match played."
The Rebels got off to a quick start in the first set, pushing out to a 4-1 lead before the Shockers would even the score at five. From there, the squads traded scores until Ole Miss put together another run to snap a 9-9 tie and - thanks in part to a pair of kills from Whitney Craven - push out to a 13-9 lead on Wichita State.
Another answering run from the Shockers tied the score at 13 and the point trading resumed. The Shockers used a kill from Mary Elizabeth Hooper to take a 17-16 lead on the Rebels and held the lead the rest of the way, closing out the first set 25-21.
Set two was back-and-forth from the beginning with each team fighting to gain control of the frame. Kara Mogan and Allegra Wells gave the Rebels the boost they needed at that point, putting down back-to-back kills to give Ole Miss the lead.
Wichita State would work things back to a 14-14 tie, but the Rebels would never give up the lead again as Ole Miss went on to even the match with a 25-22 win in the second set.
The Rebels rattled off four straight scores to open the third set, but again the Shockers quickly erased the lead with a run of their own to tie the match at four. Another Hooper kill snapped a 6-6 tie and gave Wichita State the lead for good as the Shockers claimed the third set of the match 25-17 to take a set lead on Ole Miss.
A 4-4 tie again proved to be the point where momentum shifted in the fourth and final set of the day as a Rebel attack error gave Wichita State the lead. Ole Miss dropped the match as Wichita State grabbed a 25-19 win in the fourth set.
Ole Miss returns to action next weekend when the Rebels play their home opener at the Magnolia Invitational. Ole Miss will play three matches in the weekend event, facing UALR at 1:30 p.m. on Friday before facing off against Northwestern at 7:00 p.m. that night. The Rebels will then close out the tournament against Central Arkansas at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday prior to the football game against Southern Illinois.
All matches are played at the Gillom Sports Center on campus and admission is free to all fans.
