BATON ROUGE, The. – The LSU Volleyball team will face Mississippi State in a pair of key matches that could have postseason implications on October 29-30 at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
The first serve of the weekend will be at 6pm on Saturday, October 29, and the series finale will begin at 1pm on Sunday, October 30. Both games will be broadcast on SEC Network +.
The first 250 attendees to Saturday’s game will receive a free bucket hat, and Sunday is Mike’s Kids Club Day, which will feature trick-or-treating after the game.
LSU (12-8, 6-4 SEC) is on a two-game winning streak and is currently ranked No. 28 in the latest RPI rankings, while Mississippi State (11-9, 4-6 SEC) is ranked in 26th place.
The Tigers are hitting .233 on the season and averaging 12.88 kills, 12.01 assists and 1.15 aces per set. LSU’s defense has allowed its opponents a .197 hitting percentage this season (No. 4 in the SEC) and held teams under a .200 hitting percentage 12 times. LSU is also averaging 2.11 blocks per set and 15.08 digs per set (No. 3 in the SEC) this season.
Outside hitter Sanaa Dotson leads the Tigers with 3.94 kills per set, a mark that ranks fourth in the SEC and 55th in the NCAA. Dotson also ranks 9th in the conference with 4.37 points per set and leads the team with 16 aces. Outside hitter Paige Flickinger averages 2.50 kills per set, has 14 aces and averages 2.48 digs per set.
Libero Ella Larkin is the SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week and leads the SEC with 4.55 digs per set (364 total). Larkin has compiled three 30-plus dig performances this season and adds 12 aces this season.
Setter Josie Vondran’s 6.93 assists per set ranks 10th in the SEC and contributes 61 kills, 36 blocks and 12 assists this season. Freshman Maddie Waak has recorded 4.59 assists per set to go along with 13 assists. Waak had her first career double-double with 39 assists and 10 digs at Alabama (Oct. 19). Middle blocker Anita Anwusi leads the team with 1.09 blocks per set (87 total) and has accumulated 140 total kills on the year (1.75/set).
Mississippi State is riding a four-game losing streak entering this weekend’s series. The Bulldogs are hitting .236 while allowing their opponents to hit .211 this season. MSU ranks fifth in the SEC with 13.30 kills and 12.38 assists per set and leads the SEC with 15.14 digs per set.
Right wing Gabby Waden leads the Bulldogs with 3.54 kills per set and setter Gabby Coulter ranks 9th in the SEC with 9.22 assists per set in addition to 13 aces. Defensive specialist Lilly Gunter also has 13 aces on the year and ranks 7th in the league with 3.78 digs per set, and middle blocker Deja Robinson leads the team at the net with 70 total blocks (1.00/set).
Despite dropping two games to Mississippi State last season, LSU is 8-2 in the last 10 head-to-head meetings and boasts a 64-11 record in the all-time series.
Season tickets for the 2022 LSU volleyball season are now available. Fans interested in becoming a season ticket holder can get more information by clicking here. All tickets will be distributed via mobile devices for faster delivery of tickets to fans, contactless transactions at the gate and more flexibility for ticket holders. For more information on mobile tickets click here.
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