BATON ROUGE, The. – LSU split the weekend series against Mississippi State after falling in five sets 24-26, 25-16, 25-16, 21-25, 14-16 Sunday afternoon at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
LSU (13-9, 7-5 SEC) has played in 10 five-set games this season, including nine in the SEC sweep where they hold a 6-3 record. Mississippi State (12-10, 5-7 SEC) snaps a five-game losing streak in the win, despite being outscored .167-.150.
The Tigers posted 12 blocks to mark the second straight game and fourth in five games that LSU has had 10 or more blocks. The Tigers also recorded a season-high 108 digs, which is tied for No. 8 in the program record book for most digs in a five-set match.
Outside hitter Sanaa Dotson recorded her 8th double-double of the season with 18 kills and 12 digs. Dotson also matched a career high with three aces and added a pair of blocks. Middle blocker Anita Anwusi tied her season-best 13 kills behind a .385 hitting percentage and had five blocks including a solo block.
Setter Josie Vondran led the team with 22 assists and finished with five digs, four blocks and four kills. Freshman Maddie Waak had two straight double-doubles with 21 assists and a season-high 17 digs. Waak also had an ace.
Libero Ella Larkin notched her fourth game of 30 or more digs after a team-high 31 and finished with six assists. Defensive specialist Jill Bohnet followed with 21 digs and outside hitter Paige Flickinger set a season high with 18 digs to go along with seven kills and a solo block.
Set 1
- Mississippi State led 5-2 after a 4-0 run and was up 10-5 when LSU called its first timeout.
- LSU pulled within two points at 14-12 thanks to a 4-0 run of its own, but MSU extended its lead back to five at 17-12, forcing LSU to use the final timeout of the frame.
- After the Bulldogs grabbed their biggest lead of the game at 20-13, the Tigers responded by scoring eight of the next 10 points to cut the deficit to 22-21.
- Mississippi State took a timeout to stop the bleeding, but LSU kept rolling and used an 11-2 overall run highlighted by five unanswered points to take a 24-22 lead.
- The Bulldogs continued to fight back with two match points and closed out the set on a 4-0 run to win it 26-24.
Set 2
- LSU took a 12-8 lead courtesy of a 4-0 run that led to MSU’s first timeout in the stanza. The Tigers extended their lead to six points at 19-13 when the Bulldogs called their final timeout.
- The Tigers eventually returned the favor and closed out the set with four unanswered points and took a 25-16 second set to tie the match.
- LSU hit .325 in the set with 17 kills while holding Mississippi State to a .086 hitting percentage with just 10 kills. Anwusi dominated the frame with six kills (.625) and contributed one block.
Set 3
- Another early 12-7 lead for the Tigers forced a Bulldog timeout. MSU burned the final timeout as LSU took a 21-14 lead late in the set.
- After the break, Mississippi State scored a touchdown, but the Tigers scored four of the next five points, including an ace by Dotson to seal a 25-16 victory and a 2-1 lead in the game.
- In addition to her two aces in the set, Dotson led the Tigers with four kills.
Set 4
- A 4-1 LSU run led 12-8 when MSU called for a timeout. However, the Bulldogs came back and took an 18-17 lead to force an LSU timeout.
- The Tigers quickly regained the lead with three straight points after the break in action, but MSU responded with a 3-0 run of its own to take a 21-20 advantage, pushing LSU into the final timeout.
- The Bulldogs’ run continued on the other side of the break as a 6-1 aggregate run gave the visiting team a 25-21 victory to force a fifth set.
Set 5
- The teams traded arms with LSU leading 8-7 with six ties and three lead changes as of media time.
- After the break, MSU scored the next three points to take a 10-9 lead and LSU called a timeout.
- The Tigers were gifted a Bulldog service error for a 10-10 tie, but the visitors found the floor on a pair of kills to go up 12-10 and LSU took the final timeout.
- LSU scored three of the next five points to pull within one point at 14-13 and MSU called time. An attacking error by the Bulldogs tied the score at 14, but the visiting team came back with back-to-back kills to win the set 16-14.
The next one
LSU will play away from home for four straight games beginning with a two-game series at Tennessee Nov. 5-6.
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