Volleyball drops two over weekend

The Minnesota State volleyball team is finding themselves in a deeper hole than they were in prior to this week, following two losses to No. 14 Southwest Minnesota State and Sioux Falls.

The Mavericks went on the road to Marshall, Minn. to take on a top 15 team in Division II in the SMSU Mustangs.

The Mavericks were able to hold their own a lot of the first set, staying within one point, and even holding the lead at times, with the Mustangs. It wasn’t until a timeout from MSU when SMSU started to take control. SMSU extended their 13-11 lead, to a sudden 25-15 set win to take the first set.

The Mustangs came out a lot more explosive in set two, starting out with a 6-0 lead. It seemed as though the Mavs did not stand a chance, only being able to close the gap to a five point deficit in set two, and eventually dropping the set 25-15 for a second time.

It was a steep mountain to climb for the Mavericks to come back in the third set, and they could not quite manage it. SMSU jumped out to another demanding early lead, and would not be able to come up with a win, and were sent out of Marshall with a 3-0 sweep.

The mavericks started Saturday in similar fashion to how they started Friday, in a close neck and neck battle, but it ended all too familiar, as well.

USF was able to jump out to a 16-13 lead after a close first set, leading to an MSU timeout.

Head coach Corey Phelps tried to bring his team back in it with a plan and closed the gap to just one point at 17-16, but it would not be enough, as the Cougars went on to take the first set 25-21.

It was the same story for the second set, with the Mavericks keeping themselves in it until another 16-13 deficit, and not being able to crawl themselves out of the hole they found themselves in. The set ended with a 25-18 score, and one last chance to take at least a set away from the home team.

But the Cougars were too tough a team on that day to overcome, taking away the 25-16 set win, and the 3-0 match sweep.