STARKVILLE — The Jackets came out on top in a five-set thriller on Monday, defeating New Hope 3-2.
The game went the distance after an hour and a half of back-and-forth play, with New Hope forcing a fifth set in a dramatic 25-22 fourth-set win. They trailed 21-16 at one point before mounting a ferocious comeback, but the hosts pulled away in the end to win 15-12 in the decisive set.
“I think tonight, fatigue may have hurt us a little bit, but I’m proud of the squad,” Trojans head coach Laura Lee Holman said. “I hate losing but I think they gave it a good fight. It’s a young team and they have a lot of growing to do, but they’ve grown up fast since this weekend.”
Both teams were in Jackson over the weekend for the Mississippi High School Activities Association Volleyball Invitational, meaning this was the fifth match in just three days for both squads. The Trojans finished runners-up in the silver bracket, falling to DeSoto Central in the championship.
“We won some ball games but we didn’t always look like a team, and tonight I think they gained some more confidence in each other,” Holman said of the weekend performance. “If we can grow on that we’ll be OK in the long run.”
“This is how it is,” Starkville head coach Meghan Mullane said. “Preseason is compact because in two weeks we start actual district play and you know our district it’s tough, with Madison Central, Tupelo and Germantown. We tried to load our schedule early to see what our options are. Tonight we played a different defensive setup than we played all weekend. It’s just whatever it takes to win the game.”
The Jackets went 3-0 on Saturday before falling to powerhouse Brandon, the team that eventually won the weekend tournament. Their win over the Trojans was another test for them early in the season, but one that shows growth for the program after struggling to beat their local rivals in the recent past.
“It feels great,” Mullane told The Dispatch. “We took them to five sets the last time we played them and it was close, I think that one finished 15-13 in the last set, so it was important for our girls to get this one over local rivals who they haven’t been successful against.”
The two teams will meet again Monday in New Hope, a matchup the Trojans already have circled after a hard-fought defeat.
“Tonight it was about continuing to build mental toughness,” Holman said. “There were some moments where we shot ourselves in the foot, so we need to work on those, and that’s part of the game. Young teams can make you old real quick, but I’m proud of the way they competed. We’ve got a week off and then Starkville again at home next Monday, so we’ll try to get things fixed and get back to winning.”
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