FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Playing their third ranked opponent in the last four matches, Ole Miss volleyball was unable to slow down No. 12 Arkansas, falling in straight sets Friday night inside Barnhill Arena.
The Rebels (8-10, 2-5 SEC) put up a fight against one of the nation’s best teams but couldn’t keep the Arkansas attack at bay as the Razorbacks outhit Ole Miss .355 to .180. Sasha Ratliff led the offense with nine kills on a .444 clip, followed by Vivian Miller, who tallied eight on .400 hitting. Sophomore libero Cammy Niesen collected her 700th career dig in the match, finishing with 10.
After a slow start, the Rebels found themselves in an early 10-3 hole. The middles, Ratliff and Payton Brgoch, helped pull Ole Miss within four at 13-4, but Arkansas started to run away again. Not giving up in the set, the Rebels used a couple of big swings and a service ace to make things interesting. They fended off set point three times before Arkansas took the first set 25-21.
Ole Miss faced another early deficit in the second set, falling behind 9-2 quickly. Shayla Meyer helped side out, and Ole Miss began to work from behind again. Down seven at the media break, the Rebels responded with a 3-0 run to make it 11-15, but the Razorbacks traded a 4-1 run to be the first team to 20. Out of an Ole Miss timeout, Arkansas closed out the set with another 4-1 run to win 25-16 and go up two sets to none.
Looking to extend the match, the Rebels opened the third set with a 4-1 run behind a couple big kills by Ratliff. Both teams began to go back and forth as the set featured five ties and three lead changes. Just when…
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