Jonet’ Washington
MC Contributor/Staff
The Jackson State University Lady Tigers volleyball team fell this weekend in two loses. They were defeated in both Friday and Saturday’s matches against the Prairie View A&M Lady Panthers on Sept. 23, and Texas Southern’s Lady Tigers on Sept. 24 at Jackson State University’s T.B. Ellis building.
In Friday’s game, the Tigers started out leading the Prairie View Lady Panthers with the first match scoring 25-22. They fell short in the next three matches (25-23,25-23,25-19) causing them to lose the game 3-1.
The Lady Tigers, recorded a total of 41 kills, 10 of which were made by freshman outside hitter Desiree Mack. Mack also recorded seven digs for the team.
Madison Wolf, a freshman biology major from Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., and a right side hitter for the Tigers, recorded 8 kills that night. Wolf also accumulated a hitting percentage of .280.
Sophomore psychology major from Ewa Beach, Hawaii, Markayisha Masani, led the teams defense with a total of 10 digs, and junior social work major from Evanston, Ill., Arianna Salas set up a total of 34 assists for the team.
Despite their loss, Jackson State University students and fans of the Lady Tigers were in full support of the team.
Jayah Alexander, a sophomore graphic design major from Greenville, Miss., gave her thoughts on how she felt about the team’s loss.
“The girls are still the best team in the SWAC, this is still the beginning of their conference season,” said Alexander.
In Saturday’s match against Texas Southern, the Lady Tigers couldn’t bring in the win, losing each match for a final score of 3-0 (25-20, 27-25, 25-21).
The Lady Tigers recorded a total of 34 kills (compared to Texas Southern’s 44), and recorded a total hitting percentage of .188.
Senior biology/pre-med major from St. Croix, Virgin Islands, Tamisha Barry, and sophomore healthcare administration major from Trussville, Ala., Alexxi Howell, led the team’s total kills, each recording 7 kills. Barry held a hitting percentage of .227 and Howell held a hitting percentage of .556.
Barry also, along with sophomore marketing major from Birmingham, Ala., Tyler Moorer, led the team’s defense with 7 digs each. Defensively, both teams recorded a total of 31 digs.
Khalil Morris, a junior criminal justice major from Cartersville, Ga., gave his thoughts on the women’s game on Saturday.
“They can do better, they’re the SWAC champs. I definitely wasn’t expecting them to lose today,” said Morris.
The two losses this weekend definitely affected the season, especially Friday’s game since it is a part of the women’s conference matches.
Other fans were somewhat disappointed in the team’s performance, yet they continued to support their fellow Tigers.
“They will be right back to winning games again, this is just a minor setback,” said R’Myni Watson, a sophomore theatre major from Baton Rouge, La.
The Lady Tigers initially started this year’s conference season with a good start by defeating the Mississippi Valley State University Lady Devils back on Sept. 16. The Jackson State University Lady Tigers are currently the Volleyball SWAC champions as of 2015.
The Lady Tigers next home game against Jacksonville State University will takeplace on Oct. 11 at 6:30 p.m. in the T.B. Ellis Gym.
