CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College volleyball team fell in five sets to the 16th ranked University of West Florida in Gulf South Conference action on Tuesday, Sept. 26. It marked the fourth time this season the Choctaw (3-8, 2-2 GSC) have gone to the deciding set this season.
 
Lydia Paulette and Caroline Chastang notched double-digit kills in the setback. Paulette paced the squad with 18 kills and tied for tops on the team with five service aces, which equaled her career-high set against the Argonauts last season in Clinton. The 18 kills give her 10 contests this season in double figures and 34 for her career.
 
Chastang supplied 13 kills and matched her Yellowhammer State teammate in service aces – a new career-best for the reigning GSC Player of the Week – as it surpassed her previous high of three set at Augusta University earlier this season. She has seven consecutive contests with double figure kills and eight on the season. The sophomore also added 11 digs – second most on the team in the match.
 
Ali Wiggins matched her career-high as she led the team with 25 assists – a mark set last week in the conference opener with Auburn University at Montgomery. It is the sixth time this season she has 20-plus assists in an outing and the ninth of her career. The Enterprise, Ala., native logged 10 digs and added a kill and ace to her ledger.
 
Caylin Pixley helped direct the offense with 17 assists, a kill and an ace on the night. Missy Beber led the team with 12 digs while Julia Sumrall helped lead the way on the defensive side of the net with four blocks as well as picking up five kills.
 
The Blue and Gold took the opening two sets by identical scores of 25-19 and looked to sweep the visitors from the Sunshine State in straight sets for the first time in program history and its second win in the series. However, the Argonauts battled back to take the third set 25-19 and evened the contest at two sets each with a narrow 25-22 victory in the fourth.
 
MC held as much as a 17-14 advantage in the fourth frame, but UWF strung together a 5-0 run to take a 19-17 lead. A service error broke the Argos' rhythm and a Paulette kill knotted the contest at 19-all. The Blue and Green responded with a second 5-0 spurt to regain and extend the lead to 24-19. The Choctaw held off set point with a three straight points, including a kill from Pixley and Sloane FitzHenry with a Paulette service ace sandwiched in between, but an Avery Rodgers' kill – one of her team-best 22 on the night – iced the set and delivered the match to the deciding set.
 
In the fifth, the two teams exchanged blows before a 3-0 spurt gave UWF the upper hand at 8-5 as the teams switched sides. The Argos rode the momentum as the Choctaws only pulled within two points the remainder of the way.
 
MC finished the night with a .214 attack clip and totaled 54 kills as a unit. The Blue and Green hit a .284 on the evening – its third best percentage of the season as it compiled 57 kills. The contest saw 18 deadlocks and nine lead changes over the nearly two-and-a-half-minute contest.
 
Mississippi College returns to action on Friday, Sept. 29 as it hosts the University of West Alabama in GSC play. First serve in A.E. Wood Coliseum is at 6 p.m.
  Read Full Article