After going 3-2 on a dauting five-match road trip over the past two weeks, the The No. 8 Arkansas volleyball team returned home with a purpose on Sunday, drilling Mississippi State 3-0 in front of 3,298 rowdy fans at Barnhill Arena.
It was the second-highest attendance mark in program history, behind only the 4,299 for No. 1 Wisconsin on August 30. Seven of the 10 all-time most-attended matches have come this season.
Arkansas (21-4, 11-2 SEC) remains one game behind conference leader Kentucky in the standings, after defeating the Bulldogs 26-24, 25-12, 25-22. It was the Razorbacks’ 12th sweep of the season, and sixth against at SEC opponent.
Senior outside hitter Taylor Head led the Hogs offense on the day with her 15th double-double of the season, tallying 13 kills and 10 digs. Junior setter Hannah Hogue equaled that double-double effort with 32 assists and 11 digs, while junior Courtney Jackson added a team-high 16 digs and three service aces.
The first set was tight throughout and was tied 23-23, until Head made a kill to lead the Hogs to a 26-24 victory. Arkansas jumped out early in Set 2, Consecutive kills from graduate Maggie Cartwright and Head put the Razorbacks up 12-7. They kept the pressure on with a four-point run, highlighted by two kills from junior Sania Petties, that doubled up the advantage at 18-9. Graduate outside hitter Jill Gillen had two kills late in the set to put it away, 25-12, for a two-set advantage.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the third set, before Arkansas rebounded with an 8-1 run that featured two aces – one from Cartwright and one from Jackson – as the Razorbacks claimed a 12-8 lead. Mississippi State clawed back to take a 17-14 lead, before Arkansas regrouped with a timeout and proceeded to make a six-point run with two Gillen kills, a solo block by junior Zoi Evans and capped with an ace from Hogue, to take a 20-17 lead. The Bulldogs tied it at 21-21, before the Razorbacks scored three straight, getting an ace from Jackson. Petties, a transfer from MSU, then closed out the 25-22 win against her former team with her eighth kill of the day.
The Hogs now go back on the road with trips to Alabama and Ole Miss this week, before returning home to host No. 20 Florida on Nov. 19, followed by a home showdown with No. 13 Kentucky on Nov. 22.