Starkville, Miss. -- The Stetson volleyball team fell 3-0 (25-23, 25-22, 25-21) to host Mississippi State in its first match of the Maroon Classic Friday evening at Newell-Grissom Arena.
The Hatters (1-4) battled the Bulldogs (4-1) to the wire in each set, owning late leads in the first and third frames. Overall, the match featured 28 ties and 12 lead changes.
Senior setter Kayla Weller surpassed the 3,000-career assist mark during the match, becoming just the fourth Hatter in school history to reach that milestone. She finished the contest with 30 assists.
Freshmen Haley Tippett and Madison Fitzsimmons each recorded eight kills to lead the offense. Fitzsimmons also contributed to five of the team's seven blocks.
Mississippi State outhit Stetson .267 to .088.
The Hatters will continue the Maroon Classic on Saturday with matches against Chattanooga and Mississippi Valley State.
More on Weller
Kayla Weller is the first Hatter in the rally-scoring era to record 3,000 career assists. She now has 3,007 in her career, just 325 assists shy of Tanya Roe's record of 3,332.
First Time Since
The Hatters played an SEC opponent for the first time since 2007 (Georgia) ... Stetson last faced Mississippi State in 1985.
Atlantic Sun Leader
Madison Fitzsimmons leads the Atlantic Sun with 20 total blocks.
