**NOTE: STATISTICS FROM MISSISSIPPI STATE MATCH ARE CURRENTLY UNOFFICIAL & WILL BE FINALIZED AT A LATER TIME

STARKVILLE, Miss. --- The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team opened up the 2019 season with a 3-0 sweep (25-20, 25-19, 25-14) over Western Illinois after falling to SEC-foe Mississippi State 3-1 (25-18, 19-25, 25-22, 25-19) to ultimately split on the opening day of the StarkVegas Classic in Starkville, Miss., on Friday.
 
Chattanooga moves to 1-1 on the young season following the tournament split. UTC concludes play in the Classic tomorrow.
 
Chattanooga 3, Western Illinois 0
S1 | UTC 25, WIU 20
Chattanooga trailed for much of the match's opening set, falling behind by as much as six at 13-7 before climbing back within striking distance. Six of the next nine points fell towards the Mocs on the help of kills from Dani Szczepanski and Brianna Anderson and a few WIU errors, closing the gap to 16-13.
 
After a Leathernecks kill pushed it to 17-13, Chattanooga rolled on a 6-2 run with Sarah Root chipping in with two kills during the stretch to tie the set at 19-19. WIU scored the next point to pull ahead 20-19 before UTC concluded things in dominant fashion.
 
Maddie Halsey capped off a 6-0 Chattanooga run with three-straight kills to earn the Mocs a first set win, 25-20, and a 1-0 lead in the match.
 
S2 | UTC 25, WIU 19
After finishing the first set in dominant fashion, Chattanooga continued its charge by scoring 10 of the first 15 points to build a 10-5 lead. Four different Mocs recorded kills during the early run.
 
The teams traded the next ten points to move the set to 15-10 in favor of UTC before WIU charged back with a 7-2 run to tie things up 17-17. Much like the first set, it was all Chattanooga down the stretch.
 
An 8-2 Mocs run shutdown the Leathernecks' comeback efforts. Two kills each from Root and Szczepanski helped fuel the finishing run. The 25-19 set victory extended UTC's lead to 2-0.
 
S3 | UTC 25, WIU 14
A back-and-forth start to the third set saw two ties within the first 12 points, 5-5 and 6-6. UTC pulled away from WIU by scoring 12 of the next 15 points to build a sizeable 18-9 lead.
 
The Mocs extended the nine-point advantage to as much as 12, 23-11, after kills from Anderson (2), Szczepanski and Root. Halsey ended the set, 25-14, and completed the sweep with her fifth kill of the match.
 
Notable Match Performances: Sarah Root (8 kills, .538%); Dani Szczepanski (8 kills, .500%); Brianna Anderson (8 kills, .286%, 3.5 blocks); Maddie Halsey (26 assists, 5 kills, 8 digs); Megan Kaufman (11 digs, 7 assists)
 
Mississippi St. 3, Chattanooga 1
S1 | MSU 25, UTC 18
First match jitters forced UTC into committing a few attacking errors early in the first set and allowed MSU to build a 10-4 lead. After settling in, the Mocs fought back to claw within one at 14-13 following a stretch that included four Brianna Anderson kills.
 
Chattanooga couldn't keep the momentum flowing and were forced into three attacking errors over a five-point stretch, giving MSU an 18-14 edge. UTC answered with four of the next five points to pull within one at 19-18 before the tournament-hosts ended the set, 25-18, behind six-straight points to take a 1-0 lead.
 
S2 | UTC 25, MSU 19
Chattanooga fired out with five of the set's first six points with the help of two Bailey Bennett aces during the span. The two squads went point-for-point over the next 10 rallies to move the set to a 10-6 UTC advantage.
 
The Bulldogs drew within one point on two separate occasions, 11-10 and 12-11, but failed to strike any closer. Chattanooga kept its lead for the duration of the set, building a lead as much as eight at 21-13 before ultimately closing it out by a 25-19 count to tie the match 1-1.
 
S3 | MSU 25, UTC 22
Back-and-forth action would be the best way to sum up the third with a total of 10 ties and multiple lead changes over the set's entirety. UTC raced out to a 5-1 lead before MSU responded with four-straight points to even things up.
 
The teams traded points until a Megan Kaufman ace and Sarah Root kill pushed the visitors ahead by a pair at 13-11. UTC held its lead as late as 18-17 before MSU used a 4-0 sprint to jump in front 21-18. They would close out the set 25-22 to take a 2-1 lead into the fourth.
 
S4 | MSU 25, UTC 19
With its backs against the wall, UTC once again saw itself with an early lead, this one at 4-1. Mississippi State went on a long 9-2 run from that point and continued its momentum forward. Up 10-6, the Bulldogs scored seven of the next 10 to up its lead to 17-10.
 
Chattanooga would fight back and pull within four at 21-17 behind a Maia Rackel kill, but ultimately failed to break down the barrier on its way to a 25-19 set and 3-1 match defeat.
 
Notable Match Performances: Dani Szczepanski (14 kills, .367%); Sarah Root (12 kills, .370%); Gylian Finch (10 kills, .212%); Maddie Halsey (41 assists, 12 digs); Megan Kaufman (19 digs)

NOTES
- Chattanooga opens the 2019 season 1-1 following split… looks to improve on 19-1 overall record against SWAC opponents tomorrow against MVSU.
- Dani Szczepanski notched her 24^th career double-digit kill match behind 14 kills (.367%) against Mississippi State… added eight kills at a .500% clip in win over Western Illinois.
- Maddie Halsey set a new career-high in assists with 41 during four-set match against MSU… also tied previous career-high of 12 digs… third career assist-dig double-double.
 
UP NEXT
Chattanooga (1-1) wraps up play in the StarkVegas Classic tomorrow with a 1 p.m. ET matchup against Mississippi Valley State. Live stats are available for the match with the link located on the schedule page.
 
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