CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College volleyball team fell in Gulf South Conference action in five sets to the University of Alabama in Huntsville on Wednesday, Oct. 25. It marks the sixth time in the last seven meetings the two programs have battled to the limit.
 
The majority of the Choctaws' offensive productivity came from the trio of Lydia Paulette, Caroline Chastang and Sloane FitzHenry as each recorded double figure kills on the night. Paulette paced the unit with 21 kills. It marks the fourth time this season the Tuscaloosa, Ala., native has notched 20-plus kills and the second consecutive.
 
Chastang finished with 15 put away which notched her 15th match this season with double-digit kills and the 32nd of her career. The Bay Minette, Ala., native has 298 kills during her career, which moves her to 10th all-time.
 
FitzHenry added 12 kills to match her career-high as she recorded an attack clip of .360. The kill total equals her effort against Lee University on March 27, 2021. The Houston, Texas, native also added a team-best three blocks in the performance on Wednesday evening. The three rejections move her up to fourth all-time with 221.
 
Ali Wiggins supplied 24 assists to pilot the effort. It is her 16th career match with 20-plus assists and 13th on the campaign. Caylin Pixley added 14 dimes.
 
On the defensive end, Londyn Bakeris collected a team-best 14 digs followed by Paulette, who recorded 12. Julia Sumrall joined FitzHenry in the block column as she notched a solo block as the Jackson, Miss., native stands ninth all-time in total blocks.
 
After it narrowly dropped the opening set, 28-26, the Choctaws rallied to take a 2-1 advantage in the match following identical set scores of 25-21 in the second and third frames. However, the Chargers answered with a 25-21 victory in the fourth to send the match to the deciding set. It is the eighth time this season the Blue and Gold have been to the fifth.
 
An evenly contested set through the first six points, UAH gained the upper hand at 6-3 following slight burst. However, the Choctaws rallied to draw even at eight-all as it capitalized on the some Charger errors and used kills from Paulette and Meg Paparella.
 
The visitors from the Yellowhammer State responded with a 4-0 run to regain the lead and extend the margin to 12-8 and never looked back. MC pulled within two points on a couple different occasions down the stretch, but could not overcome the deficit as UAH won the fifth frame, 15-12, on a kill from Autumn Mayes – one of her team-best 25 kills on the night.
 
The Choctaw finished the night with 54 kills, which tied for fourth this season on the team ledger. UAH bested the mark by nine as it hit .284 over the five sets. The Blue and Gold wrapped up the contest with a .193.
 
Mississippi College returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 28 as it travels to Montevallo, Ala., for a conference contest against the University of Montevallo. First serve is at 1 p.m.
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