The LSU volleyball team continued struggling to find consistency this weekend, falling to Arkansas on Sunday after earning a five-set comeback victory in its Friday match against Mississippi State.
LSU had a strong start in its match against Arkansas, winning the first set 25-21. But the Tigers were unable to maintain control, and the Razorbacks responded by taking the next three sets 25-21, 25-20 and 25-15.
“We didn’t respond very well,” said LSU coach Fran Flory. “Arkansas made some adjustments, and we didn’t respond very well.”
The loss dropped LSU’s record to 6-9 and 2-4 in the Southeastern Conference, putting the Tigers’ streak of seven straight SEC Western Division championships in jeopardy.
“I don’t think we gave it our all,” said freshman defensive specialist Haley Smith. “We’re making things hard on ourselves. We need to find some fun in the game again.”
LSU could easily attribute its woes this season to a multitude of factors, such as a difficult schedule and a lack of home games.
But the Tigers have instead chosen to take responsibility for their underwhelming season.
“We’re doing it to ourselves,” said senior outside hitter Madie Jones. “We’re not listening to our coaches when they are telling us to do specific things in games.”
Still, Flory said she believes the Tigers took some major strides in the right direction this weekend, especially in its Friday match against Mississippi State.
After taking the first set against the Bulldogs, LSU lost a tight second set 29-27, and fell 25-20 in the third set.
LSU then fell behind 22-19 in the fourth set before sophomore outside hitter Helen Boyle and junior middle blocker Desiree Elliott led the Tigers to a 26-24 victory.
The Tigers took advantage of the forced fifth set, defeating Mississippi State 15-12 to seal their victory.
“We like when we can get our team a fifth set opportunity,” Jones said. “We feel really comfortable, and most of the time we come through and pull out a win.”
The Tigers will look to bounce back at home Wednesday when they take on Georgia in a match that Flory hopes will see the return of senior defensive specialist Meghan Mannari in a limited role. Mannari has missed the last three weekends with a foot injury.
