The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
16-3, 2-3
.png&width=60&height=60&type=webp)
Mississippi State
5-16, 0-6
Rebels Sweep State
10/12/2014 | Volleyball
Box Score | Photo Gallery
BLOG: Rebels Remain Unbeaten at Home
OXFORD, Miss. - In front of a packed house of 848 fans at the Gillom Sports Center, the Ole Miss Volleyball team swept arch-rival Mississippi State 3-0 Sunday to improve to 16-3 overall and 2-3 in the SEC.
At 9-0 in Gillom this year, the Rebels have posted the most consecutive home victories. It's also the team's best start since a 17-2 start in 1989.
Looking for more production offensively, head coach Steven McRoberts switched up the rotation, moving sophomore Melanie Crow to the left side, with Nakeyta Clair, Ty Laporte and Taylor Alexander all on the floor at the same time.
It worked, as the Rebels hit .402, their best percentage in an SEC match this season and second best overall.
"It was a tremendous crowd, especially on a Sunday afternoon," McRoberts said. "Hopefully we can continue to get crowds like this. It helped lift our spirits and lifted our play. We got off to a little bit of a slow start in the match, but looking at the whole match, our offense was really efficient. Any time you hit over .400 it's a great match."
Crow, who had started all previous 18 matches on the right side, led all players on the court with a game-high 17 kills on a .552 clip. She also added five digs.
"I learned of the switch two days ago, so I had to step up my game and prepare for it with the different shots," Crow said. "I wanted to be able to keep the ball in play and get kills when needed. That was my plan coming in."
Alexander, the reigning SEC Freshman of the Week, added eight kills and hit for a career-best .538. Since coming into the lineup at South Carolina, Alexander has posted at least eight kills three times and hit above .300 in three of the five matches. Sophomore setter Aubrey Edie passed out 41 assists.
The Bulldogs hung with the Rebels in the first set leading most of the way by two points, but Ole Miss closed out the set on an 8-4 run to take it 25-22. In the second set, the Rebels pushed out to a 17-11 advantage and never looked back, winning 25-19 to take a 2-0 lead in the match.
Ole Miss maintained momentum in the third set, racing out to a 19-9 lead before State called timeout. State never got closer than nine the rest of the way, as the Rebels close the Bulldogs out 25-15 for their seventh win in the last eight against MSU.
Undefeated at home, the Rebels hit the road again for a five of their next seven, beginning with Auburn and Alabama next weekend.
For more information on Ole Miss Volleyball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissVB, on Facebook at OleMissVolleyball and on Instagram at OleMissVB.
| Ole Miss (16-3, 2-3) | 25 | 25 | 25 |
| Mississippi State (5-16, 0-6 | 22 | 19 | 1 |
