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11/21/00
Track and Field - Tiffany McWilliams of Red Bay, Ala., and Mary Francis Wright from Madison, Miss., have signed to run track and field for Mississippi State next season, head coach Al Schmidt announced Monday.

McWilliams has been running on the varsity track team at Red Bay High School since seventh grade, earning 19 state titles in the mile, two-mile, 800-meter and 400-meter events. During the fall she won the 2A state cross country championship for Donnie Roberts' Tigers. Last season she broke her own Alabama state records in the 3200 and 1600-meter runs, and she claimed the state's fastest clockings in the 800 meters and cross country.

McWilliams has also lettered four years in basketball for Red Bay HS, earning Most Improved and Best Defensive Player honors along with all-Area accolades in 1998. McWilliams, the daughter of Jon and Tammy McWilliams, also lettered two years in tennis and once in both cheerleading and softball.

Wright signs with the Lady Bulldogs after a stellar career for coach Billy Lamb at Madison Central High School. Wright is a four-time medalist for the Jaguars, earning a silver medal in the 800 meters and a bronze in the 1600 meters. She has also notched two bronze medals in both the two-mile run and the 800 meters.

An all-state track and field performer since her sophomore year, Wright has also earned all-state accolades in cross country the past two seasons. She also lettered in basketball for the Jaguars her freshman and sophomore seasons, earning Best Defensive Player honors her freshman season.

Wright is the daughter of Tommy and Helene Wright.

Reprinted with the MSU Athletic Department

11/18/00 - Mississippi State senior Brianne Smedley has become the eighth player in 26 years of MSU volleyball to earn All-Southeastern Conference distinction.

The four-year standout from Arlington, Texas was named to the All-Southeastern Conference second team. Twenty-four players representing all 11 league volleyball teams were included on the 2000 All-SEC Volleyball team, selected by the coaches.

Smedley set a school record in the just-concluded season with a .345 hitting percentage and helped lead Mississippi State to a 16-14 record, its first winning season in volleyball since 1992. She also finished fourth in career hitting percentage (.274), block solos (63) and block assists (256). The three-time SEC Volleyball Academic Honor Roll selection registered the school's first triple-double last weekend with 23 kills, 13 digs and 11 blocks in MSU's season-ending win at Auburn.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/16/00
Volleyball - A school-record eight members of the Mississippi State University volleyball program are among 79 student-athletes conference-wide named Wednesday to the 2000 SEC Volleyball Academic Honor Roll.

The honor roll, now based on grades from the preceding season, includes MSU's first four-time honoree, Jenny Hazelwood, three-time selections Brianne Smedley and Stacey Westfall, two-time qualifiers Michele Gordon, Emily Mounger, Dawn Steinhauser, and first-time honorees Katie Carraro and Misty Hubenthal.

Smedley, one of two senior members of the 2000 MSU volleyball team, heads up a group of five Bulldog volleyball players who have qualified for the 2000 Verizon-CoSIDA Academic All-America team balloting. MSU set a school record with seven entries on last year's academic all-conference team and now has earned 25 of its 56 all-time academic all-SEC honorees during the past four seasons.

"We're proud of the academic accomplishments of our student-athletes," said Bulldog volleyball coach Brenda Bowlin. "These players have worked hard on the court and in the classroom, and it's rewarding to see them honored for their dedication."

Mississippi State wrapped up its 26th season of volleyball last weekend with the school's first win at Auburn since 1986, clinching a 16-14 record and State's first winning volleyball campaign since 1992.

Sledge is a four-year starter and All-Acadiana standout as an outside hitter and middle blocker for coach Liza Whittington's Crusader volleyball team at Westminister Christian Academy. She paced WCA with 468 kills, 182 digs and 323 blocks and helped lead her team to a 21-14 mark and a berth in the state tournament. She accumulated 1,468 kills, 420 digs, 357 service aces and 1,052 total blocks, helping lead WCA to a 100-41 record and district championships the past three seasons.

"We are excited that Ashley has chosen to continue her athletic and academic careers at Mississippi State University," said Bowlin. "She comes from an outstanding background in high school and club volleyball and will be a great addition to our program. Her blocking strength and consistency on offense give her an opportunity to contribute early in her career as a rightside hitter."

Sledge also has four years of club volleyball experience with the Southern Spikers, helping lead coach Chris Campbell's Lafayette-based team to the Junior Nationals in both 1999 and 2000. In addition to volleyball, Sledge also was a four-year member of her school's basketball and track teams, earning all-district honors in both sports.

The MSU volleyball signee is the daughter of Dwight and Paula Sledge of Arnaudville, La.

Bell was a three-time NJCAA all-American at Bevill State, taking national runner-up honors in the indoor 800 meters last season. He finished a second and a half off the junior college record in the 600 meters, clocking a time of 1:19. He was a member of Bevill's indoor distance medley relay contingent that finished third nationally (10:14) and the outdoor 4x800-meter relay unit that finished third at the national meet in 7:41.

Bell made the move to Bevill after a stellar career at Opelika High School in Opelika, Ala., where he won two state championships for Tony Hoyett's Bulldogs.

Barksdale was a two-time all-Region 22 performer for Dudley in cross country at Bevill. While at Bevill State he earned JUCO all-America honors in the 10,000 meters in addition to capturing JUCO Academic all-America accolades. Barksdale is currently competing on Bevill's cross country team that is ranked No. 1 in the country. He was an Academic all-American who was selected to the U.S. Olympic Committee's altitude study in Utah during the summer of 1998.

Ledford was a member of Bevill's all-America 4x800-meter relay unit that finished third at last year's NJCAA national meet. Prior to joining Bevill State, he ran for Mobile University, where he garnered all-Gulf Coast Athletic Conference honors in cross country.

Ledford lettered in track and cross country for Don Foy at Niceville (Fla.) High School. Ledford finished third in the 800 meters at the 6A state championship meet, and he was a member of the Eagles' top-10 nationally ranked 4x800-meter relay contingent. During his junior season he helped pace Niceville's cross country squad to a third-place team finish en route to garnering the Sparkplug Award as the runner that provided the most uplift to the squad.

Bell, Barksdale and Ledford all competed for current MSU assistant coach Steve Dudley on Bevill's team that finished second in the nation academically in 1999.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/13/00 - Mississippi State's Volleyball Bulldogs closed out their 26th season of volleyball on a dramatic note Sunday, rallying from a 2-0 deficit and riding senior Brianne Smedley's school-first triple-double to a 3-2 win over Auburn. The win gave Mississippi State (16-14, 3-12) its first winning season since 1992, its first road win over Auburn since 1986 and a split of its two-match season series with Auburn (13-15, 3-12 SEC).

After dropping the first two games 15-12 and 15-11, Mississippi State captured the next three 15-13, 16-14 and 15-12 to earn the win in the two-hour, 20-minute battle.

"What a finish to the season," said MSU coach Brenda Bowlin. "Every game was so close, and our kids just wouldn't give up. I'm especially happy for our seniors. One of our goals this year was to finish with a winning season, and it's a tribute to them that we were able to reach that goal."

In her final collegiate competition, Smedley set career-highs with 23 kills and 13 digs and, with 11 total blocks (two solos and nine assists) finished with the school's first triple-double. MSU's other senior, Christine Owen, had 25 kills and a season and match-high 24 digs. Misty Hubenthal set season-highs with 25 kills and six blocks. State amassed a 94-78 edge in digs, including 18 by Tanika Taylor and 14 by Katie Carraro.

"Brianne gave us a chance to win with her remarkable performance," said Bowlin. "With Michele Gordon out of the starting lineup with illness this weekend, we asked her to take on some additional duties on defense and she did an incredible job."

Smedley finished the year with a single-season school-record .345 hitting percentage.

A pair of freshmen turned in season-best performances off the Bulldog bench. Setter Jennifer Hadden had a season-high 32 assists and matched her season-high with seven digs, while Jennifer Rousey added a season-best eight kills and six of MSU's 32 total blocks.

State jumped out to early leads in all five games. But unlike the first two sets won by the Tigers, the Bulldogs battled from behind to claim the third and fourth games and send the match to a match-deciding fifth game. State hit at a match-high .435 clip, getting five kills from Smedley and three from Owen in claiming the 15-12 win.

The victory snapped a string of 10 consecutive home wins in the series by Auburn. The Tigers got an equally impressive performance by senior Jaunelle Hamilton, whose 32 kills, 14 digs and 12 blocks also produced Auburn's first triple-double.

Mississippi State piled up a season-high 95 kills, out-hitting the Tigers .235 to .225 and matching the Tigers in total team blocks 17-17.

MISSISSIPPI STATE 3, AUBURN 2
Mississippi State (16-14, 3-12 SEC) 12 11 15 16 15
Auburn (13-15, 3-12 SEC) 15 15 13 14 12

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/11/00
Track - The Mississippi State cross country team will vie for a spot in the NCAA Championships field when they compete at Saturday's NCAA South Regional in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Saturday's 6K race marks the third competition of the season for head coach Al Schmidt's Bulldogs at the Harry Pritchett Golf Course.

MSU finished seventh at the Oct. 30 SEC Cross Country Championships, their last action at the Alabama-hosted course. The seventh-place showing marks the best team finish for a State squad at the SEC Championships since the 1991 team claimed third place.

Sophomore Joey Hansen looks to lead the Bulldogs for the fifth time this year after pacing the squad in the SEC race with an 18th-place finish (22:18.96). The top-20 finish is the best individual showing in SEC race action since April Ecke took third-place honors in 1993.

Ronni Watjus enters Saturday's race looking to continue on her solid running from the SEC meet. Watjus was the second Bulldogs to cross the finish line in Tuscaloosa, finishing 30th in 22:45.17. Fellow second-year harrier Katie Longmire has run well throughout the season, and she will be looking for a strong performance along with redshirt sophomore Christine Zawaski.

Juniors LeeAnn Ripstra and Kristin Tallent round out the Bulldog roster competing in NCAA South Regional action along with sophomores Martha Hudsonpillar and Janice Zawaski.

Michelle Green totaled a match-high16 kills and led a foursome of Crimson Tide players with double-digit kills totals. Alabama, with its first double-digit SEC win total in school history, fended off Mississippi State's upset bid with a 15-11 win in the rally-scored fifth game.

"I was proud of the way our players battled tonight," said Bulldog coach Brenda Bowlin. "We made too many unforced errors to beat a good Alabama team on their home court, but with one of our starters missing we still gave them a run for their money." Junior middle blocker Michele Gordon missed the season-ending weekend trip due to illness.

After getting blitzed 15-3 in the opening game, State parlayed seven kills by Misty Hubenthal and 14 Alabama hitting errors into a match-tying 15-12 win in game two. The two teams swapped lop-sided wins in the next two games after the break, with Alabama taking advantage of 11 Bulldog hitting errors for a 15-4 win and State, hitting at a match-high .324, knotting the match again with a 15-5 win.

Hubenthal recorded her eighth double-double with 13 kills and 15 digs. Seniors Brianne Smedley and Christine Owen had nine kills each and freshmen Tanika Taylor and Jennifer Rousey seven each. Taylor also carded a team-leading 15 digs, her ninth double-digit dig total this season. Katie Carraro, inserted in MSU's starting lineup in Gordon's absence, had eight digs.

The Bulldogs conclude their 2000 season Sunday in a 2 p.m. match at Auburn.

ALABAMA 3, MISSISSIPPI STATE 2
Mississippi State (15-14, 2-12) 3 15 4 15 11
Alabama (21-7, 10-4) 15 12 15 5 15

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/10/00
Men's Tennis - For those of you have wondered why you haven't seen Marco Baron's name appear in many of the official press releases, not to worry, he is fine. Coach Andy Jackson told me that Marco is fine, he just wanted to hold him out some this fall.

MSU snapped a season-longest seven-match losing streak and guaranteed itself of at least a .500 finish this season, winning a 3-2 marathon match against in-state SEC rival Mississippi last Sunday in the Bulldogs' final appearance at the Newell-Grissom Building this season. The 2-1/2 hour match marked State's third consecutive home win against the Lady Rebels. It was also the 47th win in four seasons for Bulldog volleyball coach Brenda Bowlin, who now has the second-most wins in the program's 26 seasons.

Bulldog senior co-captains sparkled Christine Owen and Brianne Smedley sparkled in their final home competition, registering season-highs in kills against UM. Owen, the MSU single season and career kills record-holder, tallied 26 kills, most by a Bulldog this season, and matched her season-high with 17 digs. She leads the club in both statistical categories (363 kills, 279 digs). Smedley, meanwhile piled up a season-high 17 kills during a .515 hitting performance, raising her team-leading hitting percentage to .349, fifth-best in the Southeastern Conference. With 61 career block solos, Smedley is one block away from moving into fourth place among MSU's career leaders. She also needs seven block assists to climb to fourth in assisted blocks.

Bulldog sophomore Misty Hubenthal, second on the team with 313 kills and third with 228 digs, currently leads the Southeastern Conference with 43 total service aces.

Both Alabama and Auburn claimed wins over MSU in their previous meetings at the Newell-Grissom Building, with the Tide taking a 3-1 win (15-7, 13-15, 15-11, 15-3) and the Tigers holding off the Bulldogs for a 3-2 win (10-15, 15-5, 15-10, 8-15, 15-8).

The committee, which consists of 14 members that represent men's and women's tennis on the national level, handles virtually all aspects of collegiate tennis, including legislation, future scheduling, and NCAA Championship team and individual selections each season.

Cade, who has worked with Mississippi State tennis since 1992, will be the Southeast Region chair for the eight-member NCAA Division I Men's Tennis Subcommittee. His appointment, which follows his nomination for the committee by the Southeastern Conference, carries a four-year term.

"This is an outstanding appointment for both Mississippi State and the Southeastern Conference," MSU Director of Athletics Larry Templeton said. "It speaks well of John Cade that he is the only non-coach, commissioner or athletic director selected to serve on this important committee that oversees the sport of tennis."

Now entering his 10th season of directing media relations for State's nationally prominent tennis program, Cade has worked extensively with college tennis during that time span. He has been MSU's representative at the last nine NCAA Men's Tennis Championships. He was tournament director for the 2000 SEC Men's Tennis Championship, which was held at MSUšs A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre last season, and will serve in the same capacity for the 2001 SEC Women's Tennis Championship, which State will host this coming spring.

Along with his tennis duties, Cade is also Mississippi State's assistant director of football media relations and is MSU's chief liaison for the athletic department's official site on the World Wide Web.

An avid tennis player, he currently serves on the board of directors for the Starkville Tennis Association as well.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/09/00 - Although falling a goal short in the quest for its first-ever bid to the SEC Women's Soccer Tournament, Mississippi State head soccer coach Neil McGuire called his team's 2000 campaign something to be proud of as his squad anxiously awaits the start of the 2001 season.

"I think we should be very happy with the overall performances this season," McGuire said. "Our players definitely took a big step forward in their learning curve of soccer. In terms of how the season ended, our players got very close to making the SEC Tournament, which was our ultimate goal this season. That, in essence, is our unfinished business.

"Next year we want to make sure that we compete in every game and put ourselves in a position to make the SEC Tournament."

After being predicted to finish last in its six-team SEC Western Division, State reeled off its most conference victories in school history to finish in a tie for third in the division, that too being the best conference finish in school history. As the season came to a close, MSU had collected first-time victories over Alabama, South Carolina and Tennessee to put themselves in position to achieve its ultimate goal - a qualifying spot in the conference tournament.

"I had consistently told the girls that there was more in them. They just had to bring it out," McGuire said. "Against Alabama, they really did bring out the intensity and desire that they had within themselves. Once they saw what they were capable of, they then began to produce that kind of performance consistently for the rest of the season, hence the win against Tennessee and South Carolina and the tie against Ole Miss. All of those games were excellent games for us."

State turned in a noticeable improvement this season, concluding its season with a 8-11-1 record, its best record since 1997. Included in that progress is an increase in a number of statistical areas from last season. The Maroons posted significant improvements over last season in goals (+300%), assists (+444%) and points (+342%).

But, as McGuire points out, the improvements were due largely in part to his squad's focus on team chemistry. From the start of fall practice in early August, the coaching staff and players put a primary focus on the topic.

"I don't think the team recognized just how imperative team chemistry was, and now that they do understand its importance and how much it can improve the team performance on the field, it will remain our focus" McGuire said. "We'll continue to work very hard to improve it, consistently, from now until their graduation."

As the team now heads into the offseason, McGuire will assess his personnel and the things that his young team, as well has himself, learned this season. He believes 2001 holds brighter things in store for his program.

"I feel that our girls deserved to have an opportunity to play in the SEC Tournament," McGuire said. "But, the same can be said from other coaches when talking about their own team. We had an opportunity throughout the season to make sure that we did go, but we didn't take advantage of that. I believe it will just fuel the fire for next year.

"I think that we have a belief in ourselves and a belief in this program that we can take it further, simply because we did play and compete against those good teams. This season certainly gives our players a real taste of what is possible here at Mississippi State."

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/06/00
Volleyball - Senior Salute Sunday brought out the best in Mississippi State's two fourth-year volleyball players Sunday at the Newell-Grissom Building. Veteran co-captains Christine Owen and Brianne Smedley turned in season-best performances, combining for 44 kills in leading State to a 3-2 win (13-15, 15-10, 15-9, 9-15, 15-4) over in-state rival Mississippi (14-14, 4-9 SEC). With the win in its 2000 season home finale, MSU (15-13, 2-10 SEC) assured itself of its first .500 season in volleyball since 1992 with matches remaining next weekend at Alabama and Auburn.

"We did our best job executing and playing with consistency in weeks," said fourth-year MSU coach Brenda Bowlin. "It seems like we had been stuck on 14 wins forever. It's great to get a win in the last home match, especially for our seniors. Chris and Bri stepped up and played their best match of the year. And I'm proud of the way the younger players helped make it a complete team effort."

With the win, her 47th at Mississippi State, Bowlin moved past Samye Johnson as the second-winningest coach in 26 seasons of MSU volleyball.

But it was the seniors' day to sparkle, as MSU single season and career kills leader Christine Owen piled up a season-high 26 kills and matched her season best with 17 digs. Brianne Smedley turned in a splendid 18-kill, .515 hitting performance and paced the Bulldogs at the net with six blocks.

Bowlin credited solid passing and a steady performance by setter Dawn Steinhauser with the Bulldogs' offensive success. State piled up 75 kills and hit at a .237 clip, raising the team hitting percentage for the season over the .200 mark.

Mississippi erased a 7-1 MSU lead and powered by Kira Zschau's seven-kill performance, pulled away from a 13-13 tie to take the opening game 15-13. State got five kills and three blocks from Smedley in game two, pulling away from a closely-contested set by scoring the final four points in a 15-10 win.

Christine Owen registered six kills without an error to lead State to a 15-9 win in the third game. And the Lady Rebels matched that effort, pulling away from an 8-8 deadlock for a 15-9 win in game four.

State saved its best hitting and blocking for the deciding rally-scored fifth game. Owen took charge of the game for MSU, putting down seven kills while the Bulldogs held the Rebels to one kill in 18 fifth-game attempts. Freshman Jennifer Hadden came off the bench to serve for the final eight points and the MSU win.

Sophomore Misty Hubenthal had 15 kills and a dozen digs for her seventh double-double of the season. She also served up three of MSU's seven aces. Five other Bulldogs also reached double figures in digs. Freshman Tanika Taylor had a team-high 20, Owen 17, Katie Carraro and Dawn Steinhauser 13 each, and junior Michele Gordon 12 to go with her four blocks. MSU registered a season-high 99 team digs.

UM's Zschau had 16 kills and a match-high 22 digs while Jaime Burns tallied 14 kills and 15 digs.

State puts the finishing touches on its 2000 season on the road next weekend, facing the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa Friday and the Tigers at Auburn Sunday.

MSU 3, MISSISSIPPI 2
Mississippi (14-14, 4-8 SEC) 15 10 9 15 4
Mississippi State (15-13, 2-10 SEC) 13 15 15 9 15

Leading 3-1 in the first set, Detriviere's match with 81st-ranked Anne Nguyen of Georgia was moved into a covered area in Gulf Shores, Ala., enabling the match to continue. Nguyen was able to come back after numerous delays in the action to defeat Detriviere 6-3, 6-3 at the new venue.

Senior Linda Mattsson was also slated to play on Sunday, but all Flight B Singles matches were canceled.

The ITA Regional marked the final time this fall that the Lady Bulldogs will take the court.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/05/00
Men's Tennis - Mississippi State's remaining entries at the ITA Region III Indoor Championships were eliminated from competition Saturday with losses in doubles play.

The 43rd-ranked Bulldog team of Chris McDonald and Mathieu Soto won 9-7 in their round of 16 contest with Tulane's Michael Kogan and Nikko Viljanen Saturday morning before falling by the same score to the Middle Tennessee duo of Oliver Foreman and Robert Gustafsson later in the day in the quarterfinals.

State's tandem of Rene-Charles Combette and Jerome Le Belicard, which had reached the quarters Friday night, fell 9-8(5) there Saturday in a tiebreaker to Auburn's 46th-ranked team of Georges Matijasevic and Tiago Ruffoni.

The tournament marked the conclusion of fall competition for the Bulldog netters, who will open spring competition Jan. 18-21 at the Southeastern Conference Indoor Championships, also to be held at Georgia's Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

Detriviere, ranked 66th nationally, won her Flight A round of 16 match with Tina Harrison 6-3, 6-1 to advance to Sunday's quarters.

In Flight B, senior Linda Mattson won two contests Saturday, opening the day with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Amy Bartlett. She followed with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Georgia's Alex Smith.

Lady Bulldog Yumi Ueda was eliminated from Flight B action, falling 6-1, 6-2 to Daniela Okal in the second round.

In doubles action, MSU's duo of Detriviere and Claudia Oliveira and Mattsson and Ueda both fell in their matches Saturday.

Senior co-captains Christine Owen and Brianne Smedley will be honored during pre-match ceremonies. Owen owns the MSU single season and career records for kills while Smedley, the team leader in hitting percentage and blocks, ranks as one of MSU's top all-time leaders in career hitting percentage.

In Friday night's 3-1 loss at Mississippi, Owen had 15 kills and 17 digs for her ninth double-double of the year. She leads the team with 337 kills and 262 digs. Smedley, on a team-best .409 hitting night, had 11 kills and leads the team with a .340 hitting percentage and 93 total blocks.

State puts the finishing touches on its 2000 season on the road next weekend at Alabama and Auburn.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/04/00
Women's Tennis - Mississippi State's women's tennis squad was successful in the first day of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association South Region Indoor Championships Friday, winning six of seven matches played. Senior Amelie Detriviere won three matches to lead the Lady Bulldogs and advance to the round of 16 in Flight A Singles and Doubles.

Detriviere, ranked 66th nationally, coasted in her first-round match with Samford's Stanka Ilkova, winning 6-2, 6-1. Detriviere then played a marathon match with Florida's Edit Pakay winning 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 in three hours and 15 minutes.

Also in Flight A Singles, sophomore Claudia Oliveira was defeated by Florida State's-39th-ranked Alida Gallovits 6-3, 6-0.

In Flight B Singles, senior Linda Mattson and freshman Yumi Ueda each won their first-round matches. Mattsson defeated Jamie Larson of South Florida 6-2, 6-0. Ueda fought back after falling in the first set to beat Georgia Southern's Jovana Krsikapa 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

In doubles action, MSU's duo of Detriviere and Oliveira blanked Florida A&M's Dia Collins and Rochelle Goldthreate 8-0 to advance to the round of 16 in Flight A Doubles. In Flight B, Mattsson and Ueda defeated Carolina Ararena and Talia Flores of Troy State 8-3.

Play will continue Saturday with two rounds of singles play in the morning, followed by one round of doubles matches.

State opened the match at a red-hot pace, committing just three errors, hitting at a .286 clip and bolting to a 10-1 lead before topping Mississippi (14-13, 4-8) 15-5. State battled its way to a 13-12 lead and was positioned to take a 2-0 lead in the match. But UM reeled off the next three points for a match-evening 15-13 win and was never threatened down the stretch in winning 15-6 and 15-8.

Christine Owen had 15 kills and 17 digs and freshman Tanika Taylor registered her second double-double of the campaign with 11 kills and 15 digs. Misty Hubenthal hit double digits with 14 kills while Brianne Smedley, on a team-best .409 hitting night, had 11 kills.

"We had an impressive start but as has been the case so many times this season, we weren't able to keep it going," said coach Brenda Bowlin. "We made a nice run after falling behind early in the second game. But we couldn't finish after taking a 13-12 lead."

Mississippi got a dozen kills and a match-high 19 digs from Kira Zschau.

The Bulldogs and the Rebels conclude their two-match series Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Newell-Grissom Building. MSU will pay tribute to departing senior co-captains Christine Owen and Brianne Smedley during prematch ceremonies.

MISSISSIPPI 3, MISSISSIPPI STATE 1
Mississippi State (14-13, 1-11 SEC) 15 13 6 8
Louisiana State (14-13, 4-8 SEC) 5 15 15 15

The MSU pair, which had received a first-round bye Thursday, opened Friday's action with an 8-5 victory over Evan Fowler and Ziatko Stupavsky of South Alabama in the second round. They then teamed for another 8-5 triumph against Memphis' tandem of Mike Chamberlain Joe Schmulian in the round of 16. Combette and Le Belicard must win the event to qualify for the National Indoors.

State also has another doubles duo still alive. The 43rd-ranked Bulldog team of Chris McDonald and Mathieu Soto won 8-6 in their second-round match with Yalin Bilgin and Doug Devrient of Florida Atlantic. Their round of 16 contest with Tulane's Michael Kogan and Nikko Viljanen was pushed back to Saturday morning.

In MSU singles play Friday, State's three remaining players were all eliminated from action. Soto and Romain Ambert each won their third-round contests before falling in the round of 16. Le Belicard, ranked 86th nationally, fell in three sets in the third round.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/03/00
Men's Tennis - Three Mississippi State men's tennis players have advanced to the third round of singles play at the ITA Region III Indoor Championships with wins on Thursday. The tournament is the qualifying event for the Rolex National Indoor Championships, the third leg of the Collegiate Grand Slam.

Advancing for State Thursday were Mathieu Soto, Jerome Le Belicard and Romain Ambert.

Ambert and Le Belicard both received first-round byes as 17-32 alphabetical seeds. Le Belicard, ranked 86th nationally, won his second-round contest over Memphis' Richard Magney 6-3, 2-6, 6-1 and will meet Kentucky's Gustav Pousette Friday. Ambert was a 6-3, 6-4 victor over Middle Tennessee's Oliver Foreman and will take on Tulane's Michael Kogan Friday.

MSU's other entry into the third round will be Mathieu Soto, who won two matches Thursday to advance. He opened the day by ousting Stetson's Aleksander Antonijevic 6-2, 6-2. He then upset Alabama's sixth-seeded and 25th-ranked Maxim Belski 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 in the second round. The Bulldog senior will meet Florida's Matt Behrmann Friday.

In other MSU singles play Thursday, Max Fomine and Chris McDonald were eliminated from action. Fomine won 6-3, 6-3 in the first round over Memphis' Joe Schmulian before falling to top-seeded and seventh-ranked Matias Boeker of host Georgia in the second round. McDonald fell in first-round action, dropping a 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 decision to Alabama's Chris McRae.

In doubles competition, only Ambert and Fomine were in action for the Bulldogs Thursday, falling to Mississippi's duo of Patrick Chucri and Alexander Hartman 8-5. The MSU teams of McDonald and Soto (seeded seventh), and Rene-Charles Combette and Le Belicard both received first-round byes and will begin play Friday.

"Needless to say it's a huge weekend for us," said MSU volleyball coach Brenda Bowlin. "We've been so close in so many conference matches this year. But we've got to get it done this weekend if we want to stay in the race for the SEC Tournament."

The Bulldogs, who set a school record with an 11-match win streak to open the season, will need to snap a six-match losing skid in Friday's match in Oxford if they are to keep alive hopes of making the eight-team field of the 2000 SEC Volleyball Tournament Nov. 17-19 in Gainesville, Fla. Heading into the final two weekends of regular season competition, two wins separates the four teams vying for the eighth position in this year's tournament ¯ Mississippi (3-8), Kentucky (2-9) and Auburn (2-9) and Mississippi State (1-10).

Sunday's match at the Newell-Grissom Building will include a salute to Mississippi State's departing senior co-captains, outside hitter Christine Owen and middle blocker Brianne Smedley. Owen has set school records for kills in a season (513) and career (1,521) while Smedley, who started her career as an outside hitter, ranks among MSU's all-time career leaders in both block solos (60) and block assists (234). She ranks seventh with 892 career kills and stands to finish her career with one of the school's top five career hitting percentages, now hitting at a .268 clip.

Several Bulldogs are ranked among the SEC's statistical leaders heading into the weekend. Brianne Smedley's .337 hitting average is the eight-best in the SEC, while Christine Owen ranks eighth in the league with 322 kills. Sophomore Misty Hubenthal is second in the SEC with 39 service aces and teammate Katie Carraro tied for fourth with 34. Junior setter Dawn Steinhauser is seventh with 795 assists.

The Bulldogs conclude the regular season schedule next weekend in neighboring Alabama, taking on the Crimson Tide Nov. 10 in Tuscaloosa and the Tigers Nov. 12 in Auburn.

Senior Amelie Detriviere, ranked 66th in the nation, is seeded eleventh in Flight A Singles. She will open tournament play against Stanka Ilkova of Samford. Sophomore Claudia Oliveira, who recently claimed the B-Draw title at the SEC Fall Classic, will open against 39th-ranked Alida Gallovits of Florida State. Flight A Singles will begin on Friday at 8:00 a.m., with the round-of-32 matches beginning at 11:00 a.m. on Friday.

Senior Linda Mattsson and freshman Yumi Ueda will play in Flight B Singles. Mattsson opens with Jamie Larson of South Florida, while Ueda will play Jovana Krisikapa of Georgia Southern. Ueda plays at 8:00 a.m. and Mattson begins at 11:00 a.m.

In the A doubles draw, the MSU duo of Detriviere and Oliveira, together 4-0 on the fall campaign, will take on Florida A&M's tandem of Dia Collins and Rochelle Goldthreate Friday afternoon. The team of Mattsson and Ueda will challenge Troy State's Carolina Ararcna and Talia Flores in Flight B Doubles.

The tournament will continue on Saturday and Sunday and will conclude with finals being played on Monday.

Olson was one of two goalkeepers to capture second team all-SEC honors after helping to pace a solid state defensive corp this season. Olson joins George netminder Nicole Williams and Florida goalie Jordan Kellgren on the all-conference teams.

In earning the honors, Olson becomes the first State player to be given such honors since former midfielder Meredith Riekert garnered the honors for the second-straight year at the conclusion of the 1997 season. She also becomes the first Mississippi State goalkeeper to be decorated with all-conference honors.

"Kirstin had a tremendous year for us this year and I am extremely proud and happy for her," said Mississippi State head coach Neil McGuire. "She provided us with great leadership which ultimately helped our younger defenders get used to the rigors of the SEC. Her biggest assets were her distribution and ability to make the big save when needed, which she did on several occasions."

In her third and final season in the nets for the Bulldogs, Olson turned in perhaps her finest performance since joining Mississippi State via Southern Methodist University prior to the 1998 campaign. In a contest with Furman at the Umbro Challenge in Greenville, S.C., Olson tallied 10 saves to move into first place on State's all-time career saves list.

But, the best performances of her three-year career in Starkville came down the stretch for the Bulldogs when the Germantown, Tenn., native turned in key performances to help State move into its final conference game with a chance to secure its first-ever SEC Tournament berth. She iced down the Alabama offense in a 2-0 State victory in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on October 8 then collected spectacular saves in a 1-0 victory over Tennessee in Knoxville, Tenn. on October 20. Both victories were firsts for Mississippi State in the series with the Crimson Tide and Lady Volunteers.

In the final SEC game of her career, Olson matched her own single-game record with 14 saves against Mississippi to finish with 51 saves in SEC games only. Her 1.55 goals against average inside the conference ranks as a program high for a Mississippi State goalkeeper.

Olson finishes her career at Mississippi State with a 2.27 GAA and a MSU career record 291 saves. She also captured academic all-conference accolades for the first time this season.

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

11/02/00
Men's Tennis - Mississippi State men's tennis team will conclude its 2000 fall schedule this weekend, Nov. 2-5, at the ITA Region III Indoor Championships in Athens, Ga. The tournament is the qualifying event for the Rolex National Indoor Championships, the third leg of the Collegiate Grand Slam, held in February.

In action for State this weekend in singles will be Romain Ambert, Max Fomine, Jerome Le Belicard, Chris McDonald, David Ruiz and Mathieu Soto. Ambert and Le Belicard, ranked 86th in the country, are both seeded 17-32 alphabetically.

In doubles, McDonald and Soto will team, as will Ambert and Fomine, and Rene-Charles Combette and Le Belicard. McDonald and Soto, ranked 43rd nationally as a duo, reached the finals of the tournament last season and are seeded seventh. Combette and Le Belicard are seeded 9-16 alphabetically.

A total of 33 schools will be represented at the event, which features a 96-player singles draw and a 48-team doubles field.

Play begins Thursday morning at 9 a.m. ET at the University of Georgia's Dan Magill Tennis Complex.

This year's class marked the fourth-straight season that the Bulldog Soccer team has sent double-digit honorees to the coveted student-athlete honor.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must: 1) have a 3.0 grade point average for either the past year of for their career; 2) be a sophomore or higher in academic classification; and 3) have 24 semester hours countable toward a degree. The 2000 SEC Women's Soccer Academic Honor Roll is based on grades from the 1999-2000 academic calendar.

Of Mississippi State's 26 players on its 2000 roster, 14 are freshmen or newcomers. Ten of 12 eligible athletes on State's soccer team, that is a sophomore or higher in academic standing, received conference academic accolades this season. Senior Annemarie Pimentel and sophomore Stephanie Lyon were two of just nine athletes on the 123-member honor roll with 4.0 grade point averages for their career.

"We are very proud of our team's academic achievements," said Mississippi State head coach Neil McGuire. "Each player has dedicated themselves in the classroom and these statistics speak volumes for their effort.

"MSU athletics prides itself on both academic and athletic excellence and this shows the strength of our commitment."

2000 SEC Women's Soccer Academic Honor Roll (Mississippi State Players Only)
Sam Corker 3.49 Secondary Education
Beth Dreher 3.55 English
Lynda Henry 3.18 Undecided
Jessica Kauffman 3.58 Human Sciences
Stephanie Lyon 4.00 Elementary Education
Kirstin Olson 3.50 General Business Administration
Annemarie Pimentel 4.00 Fitness Management
Charleston Platt 3.47 Psychology
Jessica Wells 3.36 Mathematics
Brandi White 3.30 Fitness Management

Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department

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