Fifth-Set Rally Leads to Win in Starkville

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Facing a four-point deficit late in the fifth set Sunday afternoon, the University of Arkansas volleyball team won seven of the next eight points to post a five-set road win over Mississippi State. With 20 kills, Danielle Harbin led a quartet of Razorbacks in double figures, including Savannah Voelzke who notched her fifth double-double of the season with 14 kills and 17 digs. The Razorbacks have won three straight and five of their last seven.

The Razorbacks return to action Wednesday in their final home match of the season, traveling to Columbia, South Carolina, to play the Gamecocks at 6 p.m. (CT). Arkansas’ next home match—and Senior Day—is Saturday, Nov. 26, when the team hosts No. 5 Florida at Barnhill Arena.

FINAL
Arkansas 3, Mississippi State 2 (26-28, 25-19, 21-25, 25-21, 16-14) | Box Score
Attendance: 516 | Time: 2:30
Newell-Grissom Building (Starkville, Miss.)

#RazorStats
Leaders vs. Mississippi State
o Kills: Danielle Harbin – 20 (seventh match with 20+ kills this season)
o Digs: Okiana Valle – 18
o Blocks: Ana Sofia Jusino – 6.0 (1-5)
Double-doubles vs. Mississippi State
o Savannah Voelzke – 14 kills, 17 digs (tied career highs)

In the decisive set, Mississippi State (13-18, 5-12 SEC) took a 4-1 lead after a service ace and led by as many as four points on four different occasions, lastly at 13-9. The Razorbacks started their rally with back-to-back kills from Barbara Dapic and a kill from Voelzke to pull to within one at 13-12. Voelzke and Ana Sofia Jusino teamed up for a block to tie followed by an attack error by the Bulldogs that gave Arkansas (8-20, 6-10 SEC) match point with its first lead of the set.

The Bulldogs stayed alive to tie the score at 14-all but the team responded with another kill from Dapic, her third during the 7-1 run down the stretch. On the next play, Voelzke registered the final tally with a kill to secure Arkansas’ second five-set win of the season. The Razorbacks were aided by a .375 hitting percentage in the final frame. For the second-consecutive outing, freshman setter Rachel Rippee established a career high with 56 assists.

With her fourth kill of the match, Harbin became the 23rd player in program history to reach 700 career kills. She and Voelzke were joined in double figures by Dapic who finished the match with 12 kills and Breana Jones who put down a career-high 16 kills. The senior middle blocker had just one attack error in 29 swings on her way to posting a .517 hitting percentage. The Razorbacks combined for a season-high 68 kills in the win.

Defensively, Jusino put up a match-high six total blocks to help Arkansas to 10.0 total team blocks which marks the team’s 12th double-digit showing of the year, and sixth in the past seven matches. Behind the block, sophomore libero Okiana Valle collected a match-high 18 digs to go along with Voelzke’s defensive effort. Kori Ortiz had a season-high 14 digs and Adrien Wohlschlaeger picked up 12 digs, her fourth double-digit performance of the season.

Facing a 2-1 match hole, the Razorbacks used a seven-point surge to take a 13-8 advantage in the fourth set. With its lead down to one at 15-14, Arkansas won five of the next six points to regain its five-point cushion. During the run, a Dapic-Jones tandem block was sandwiched between a pair of Voelzke kills. The team led by as many as seven but Mississippi State saved three set points to pull to within three. Out of an Arkansas timeout, Jones pushed the match to five with a tip kill over the block.

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