STARKVILLE, MISS. - Lipscomb volleyball fell in straight frames in their opening match of the Maroon & White Invitational. The Bisons kept each set close (25-22, 25-21, 25-18) but couldn't hold on late, snapping their three-game win streak in Starkville. 

Neither team swung the ball well, with each finishing under a .100 percent clip for the match. The Bisons' preseason service line woes slowed down their attack, ending with 17 service errors on the night. Lipscomb finished the game with 29 kills and 11 blocks.

Cora ter Kuile earned another start because of her stellar play of late and hammered down a career-high 12 kills on a .471 hitting percentage to go along with two blocks and three service aces. Meg Mersman also gave the Bulldogs fits at the net with seven total blocks, a season-high.

Set 1:

The Bulldogs had three early blocks, which helped them start with a 5-2 lead in set one. Set one saw minimal big runs as both teams fought to trade points for most of the frame. Mississippi State held an edge despite Lipscomb leading the kill department to end the set. Some attack and service line errors prevent the Bisons from gaining an advantage as well as good play from the Bulldogs front line. In the middle of the frame, State took a three-point lead (13-10), but Lipscomb rallied off four straight to take the lead back. The Bisons looked like they'd hold on to some momentum to close the set-out, but after an overturned review and tied the set at 19 points each, Mississippi State tallied two straight points after the break and then later, with another tie ball game (22-22), the Bulldogs scored the set's final three to take the opening frame 25-22

Set 2: 

Lipscomb held a 9-6 advantage after a 4-0 run with a Bulldog attack error, a kill from Courtney Jones, a service ace, and a block from Jada DiVita and Berkley Mischler. Mississippi State answered with a run of their own, which made the second set more like the first, a back-and-forth, point-for-point sequence. The Bulldogs turned a one-point deficit into a six-point lead after a 7-0 run in the second frame. It was the Bisons' turn to answer, and they did just that with two straight points on a block and an attack error by the Bulldogs. Lipscomb cut their deficit to as little as three on back-to-back kills by Stogner and Mersman, but another mistake on a service gave the Bulldogs the final point and the second set. 

Set 3:

Lipscomb raced off to an early lead (7-2), capped off by a big-time block on the right side by Mersman. However, the Bulldogs eventually closed the gap and worked to tie the game (11-11). Three service errors in the early part of set three gave the Bulldogs free points. Later, two straight aces, due to miscommunication by Lipscomb's back-line forced a timeout. After the timeout, the Bulldogs jumped in front on a block and attack error, but like the first two sets, the Bisons didn't go away quietly. Three straight points, two of which came on service aces from ter Kuile, evened the score (15-15), forcing a Bulldog timeout. Unfortunately, the Bulldogs pounced on the Bisons late to close out the set, scoring 10 of the last 13 to win the final frame more convincingly than the first two, 25-18. 

COACH ROSENTHAL POSTGAME: 

"Tonight was one of those matches where we unfortunately made too many errors and just put ourselves in bad spots. At times, we must get over the hump, and it just didn't. We put ourselves in bad positions, and you can't do that over time. We aired ourselves out of this match, and ultimately, when you do that, you will get beat. I wish we had some bright spots, but there wasn't. The tough part about it is to play as well as we did last Saturday and then come back and play like this. So, we needed more intensity, we needed more focus, we needed more discipline. We lacked that drive to compete. I'm not saying that we weren't trying, but there's a difference in, you know, trying and competing, and ultimately, when you're playing D-1 volleyball and power-five schools, if you're not ready to fight for it, they will make you pay. And so tonight was one of those nights we obviously didn't earn it. That's tough as a coach because you try to put them in the best position possible, and that falls on myself and the coaching staff, but it's something that we've got to take and try to figure out the next step. The past three weeks, we kept getting better and better each week, each match, and this was a step backward. So we go back to work tonight and figure some things out and see what we can put together for tomorrow." 

Up Next:
Lipscomb will battle Abilene Christian tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. CT in Starkville.