CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College volleyball team opens its 2015 schedule on Thursday, Sept. 3 as MC hosts Alcorn State and Tougaloo at A.E. Wood Coliseum. Match time against ASU is slated for 3 p.m. with a 5 p.m. contest against TC to follow.
 
The doubleheader is the first of 12 outings inside the Coliseum this season.
 
Mississippi College embarks on its second season in the competitive Gulf South Conference with an abundance of youth on roster. A combined 21 freshmen and sophomores comprise a bulk of the ledger.
 
"We've seen good levels of competiveness. Our ability level with our freshmen has been good. We've been pleased with our newcomers. We've brought some of them in to see the court right away," said Peter Cosmiano. "Our sophomores are one of the more experienced sophomore classes in the conference. They played a lot last year and got experience as freshmen. We are expecting them to step up to the plate and bring maturity and competitiveness."
 
The Lady Choctaws return 11 players from last season, including eight sophomores. Amid the top returners from 2014 are kills leaders Krista Zieschang, Ashton King and Kayana Mitchell. Each registered 150-plus kills during the season. Assists leader Sydney Chandler also returns for the Blue and Gold, as she dished out 460 assists last season.
 
"Ashton King has become a very dynamic right side hitter. Normally in this conference and at this level, the teams with the better right side hitters are the teams that are more competitive. Ashton along with Jenna Campbell will hold that position down," said the 12thyear head coach. "We are excited to have Madison Frazier back on the court after an injury and it should be interesting to see how she comes back. Sydney Chandler is our setter along with Bailee Berringer. We feel pretty good about our offensive captains. Setters are like quarterbacks in the fact that the ball gets in their hands about every other touch. Sydney has worked really hard during the offseason and matured a lot over the summer."
 
Arielle Laurent is the lone senior on the squad and will be looked upon for her leadership in the program. The Memphis, Tenn., native is only member of the team who has registered more than one season of action.
 
Among the 14 total newcomers are Berringer and Jamila Biglow. The duo was tabbed among the GSC's Top Newcomers. Berringer comes to the program as a setter from Dickinson High School in Texas. Biglow is a transfer, middle blocker from Northwest College.
 
"Bailee Berringer is going to be holding down the second part of our 6-2 offense. She's come in a contributed a lot of competitive experience. Jamila is going to hold down the middle position. She's solid, steady and works really hard. She does a good job presenting herself to the setter and being a viable option," Cosmiano said. "Shelby Grace Mays has impressed the coaches of the last few weeks, because every opportunity she's had in practice, she's got better."
 
"We've had a really good preseason. We already know each other's mentalities on the court and communicate well," Mays said. "Volleyball is a real mental game and I already feel like that is something we have on our team."
 
Junior Alex Hackett shares her freshman teammate's excitement for the start of the season. "I am really excited about this season. We are transitioning in our mindset and starting to come together as a team. In practice, we've grown mentally and physically, and are ready to show what we have on the court."
 
Alcorn State enters Thursday's action seeking its first win of the season after the Braves went 0-3 at the Houston Baptist hosted Marriott Houston Westchase Invitational over the weekend. Tougaloo sits 3-2 on the season after falling, 3-2 at Grambling State on Tuesday.
 
Following the Thursday's slate, Mississippi College travels to Memphis, Tenn., on Friday. The Lady Choctaws will face Bellarmine at 2 p.m. followed by a 4:30 p.m. contest against Lindenwood. Live stats from CBU are located http://www.sidearmstats.com/cbu/wvball/.