MONTEVALLO, Ala. --- The Mississippi College volleyball team wrapped up the eighth and final seed in the 2021 Gulf South Conference Tournament on Saturday, Nov. 13. MC went five sets for the second time this weekend and were outlasted as the University of Montevallo walked away with the five-set victory on Saturday, Nov. 13. MC moved to 8-15 on the season and 6-9 in Gulf South Conference action. UM improved to 18-13 and 9-7 in the league.

MC, which went to five sets on Friday evening at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, grabbed a GSC Tournament berth for the second consecutive season. The Navy and Gold made the 2019 GSC Tournament as the eighth-seed. The last back-to-back trips to the GSC Tournament were during the 1993 and 1994 seasons.
 
Lydia Paulette paced a quartet of Choctaws with double figure kills. The Tuscaloosa, Ala., native totaled a career-high 15 kills in the match. Kendall Platt added 13 kills followed by Sloane FitzHenry with 11. Stevie Nesbit chimed in 10 kills. Lexie Laurendine dished out 53 assists and added 11 digs.
 
Missy Beber compiled 16 digs to lead the team on the day while Lexi Richards posted four total blocks on the defensive end. Nesbit and FitzHenry had three blocks apiece.
 
After a see-saw opening set that saw the Falcons grab a 26-24 victory, the Choctaws knotted the match at a set each with a 25-20 win in the second set. UM opened the second with a 4-1 run, but the Navy and Gold rallied and tied the set at 11-all and then scored the next four points to take a 16-11 advantage. MC marched out to a 20-14 advantage before walking away with a five-point win to tie the contest.
 
The Purple and Gold grabbed a 2-1 lead after winning the third set, 25-22. MC again tied the contest in the fourth to force the match the deciding set as the Choctaws won 25-21. Like the second set, UM grabbed an early lead, but again the Navy and Gold rallied and tied the contest at 16-all. MC pushed its lead out to 20-17. The Falcons pulled within a point on two different occasions, the last coming at 22-21. The Choctaws posted the final three points as Richards recorded a pair of kills with the final point coming off a tip from FitzHenry.
 
Montevallo posted an early lead and grabbed a 6-2 cushion in the fifth set. MC went on a 4-1 run to pull within 7-6 behind kills from FitzHenry, Platt and Richards, but couldn't overcome the deficit as UM claimed a 15-9, match-clinching victory.
 
Mississippi College opens GSC Tournament play on Friday, Nov. 19 as it takes on fifth-seeded Auburn University at Montgomery.
 

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News and Notes
- Laurendine's assists total was one short of her career-high and program's single-match best 54. The junior accomplished set the program's single-match best on Sept. 17 vs. the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
- Paulette's previous career-best was 13 in a five-set win at Auburn-Montgomery on Oct. 2. Paulette has led the Choctaws in kills four times this season, which is third on the team.