Tech falls in five sets to Ole MissTech falls in five sets to Ole Miss
Volleyball

Tech falls in five sets to Ole Miss

JONESBORO, Ark. – In the first match of the A-State Invitational, Virginia Tech’s volleyball team fell to the hands of Ole Miss, 3-2, inside the Convocation Center Friday afternoon.

Three players for the Hokies (3-1) tallied 10 or more digs in Rhegan Mitchell (10), Ester Talamazzi (16) and Jaila Tolbert (14) as Tech lost its first match and five-setter of the year. It defeated Idaho State and Milwaukee in five sets opening weekend.

The Rebels (4-1) led by Lexi Thompson, who posted 10 kills and 15 digs, got off to a fast start in the first set. Ole Miss began the opening frame going up 10-2, before Tech went on a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to three, 10-7.

After a push by the Rebels, Tech could not cut into the lead any further as Ole Miss finished the first set strong, winning 25-16.

Set two swung the momentum to head coach Jill Wilson’s squad, though, no team built a larger lead than three points. In back and forth action trailing 21-20, Tech battled and finished on a 6-3 run to edge the Rebels, 26-24.

Keeping the energy on the Maroon and Orange side, the Hokies built their biggest lead of the day with a 16-10 advantage after Stacey Christy’s kill placing in the back right corner. Tech would stay rolling throughout the rest of the set as it continued building its lead, winning by a 7-point advantage in the third set.

Things would swing back to the Rebels' side as they earned a 5-1 lead in the beginning moments of set four. Tech came back to cut the lead to one, 17-16, but Ole Miss finished on an 8-1 run behind three kills from Thompson.

In set five, the Rebels got out in front and never looked back, winning their opening match at the A-State Invitational.

NOTES

- Tolbert posted four blocks, tying her season high she set against Milwaukee. The junior racked up 12 kills with a team-best .321 hitting percentage.

- Freshman Kylie Thomas competed in her first match at the college level, playing in two sets. While playing in the third frame, Thomas tallied an ace to push Tech’s lead to 24-17. In addition, she recorded the first dig of her young career.

- Tech played in its first set of the season that went over the 25-point plateau, winning set two by a score of 26-24.

STAT OF THE MATCH

Tech got it done at the net as four players had three or more blocks – Marisa Cerchio (3), Cara Cunningham (5), Talamazzi (4) and Tolbert (4).

TWEET OF THE DAY

WHAT IS NEXT

The Hokies will come back later tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET as they clash against Arkansas State, the hosts of the four-team tournament.