Bulldogs get 1st MACCC victory

Mississippi Gulf Coast got its first conference win in modern volleyball history Wednesday, and the Bulldogs did it in a most memorable way.

They made the long trek to Booneville shorthanded and rallied from one-set deficits twice to beat Northeast Mississippi 16-25, 25-18, 23-25, 25-19, 15-10.

"I love that we got it this way," Gulf Coast coach Shayna Walsh said. "I love we had to earn it. That makes it that much sweeter."

The Bulldogs improved to 6-2 overall in their third MACCC match of the young season. Northeast is 3-7, 1-2.

Once again, Gulf Coast got off to a slow start and dropped the opening set. They rebounded quickly to tie it up by cruising through the second. They almost erased a big deficit in the third set, but couldn't catch up to set up a pair of must-win sets.

The Bulldogs did so despite playing without four players, forcing players to step into unfamiliar roles.

"This group never ceases to amaze me," Walsh said. "They don't know what quit means. They won't quit on me; they won't quit on their teammates. They will fight to the very end, and they proved it yet again tonight."

Outside hitters Mariah Hammond (Fr., Slidell, La./Northshore) and Cadie Jo Byrd (Fr., New Albany/Ingomar) feasted on wide sets, hitting down the lines. Hammond had 18 kills at a .400 percentage, and Byrd added 11.

"They did a great job and got us a lot of kills," Walsh said. "They were being really aggressive."

Sydney Tague (Fr., Olive Branch/DeSoto Central) had 25 assists, and Lila Turner (Fr., Kiln/Hancock) added 22. Cambell Herrington (Fr., Brandon/Brandon) had 15 digs.

Gulf Coast is back in action at Perkinston on Monday. East Central visits Dantzler Arena, with start time set for 6:30 p.m. The match will be streamed at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch, and tickets are available at http://mgcccbulldogs.com/tickets.

For more information on MGCCC's 12 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.