It was a never-say-die attitude that pulled the MSU volleyball team (5-1) to take second in this weekend's Green Mill Restaurant Classic in Wichita, Kan., after losing only one match, head coach Chuck Erbe said.
Although the team fell to No. 6 Washington on Saturday, its performance against Wichita State set the scene for what the Spartans are capable of, Erbe said.
"I liked the heart and the competitiveness this team showed," Erbe said. "They refused to lose."
The weekend started with a 3-1 victory over Arkansas where junior middle Megan Wallin had a career high of 22 digs and senior outside hitter Kim Schram posted 25 kills.
Freshman outside hitter Katie Johnson had 16 kills, 11 digs and five service aces.
In the Friday match against Wichita State, MSU was down 2-1, when Erbe said a few key changes, including switching Schram for senior outside hitter Diana Steplyk, pushed MSU to a win.
The MSU spikers fought Wichita State with 20 kills and 11 digs from junior middle Brooke Langston and 18 kills from Wallin, while Wichita State's libero Karen Augspurger had 30 digs and junior outside hitter Laura Geer with 15 kills, 10 digs and one block assist.
The Spartans hitters came out shaky, but quickly improved in consistency and confidence as the games progressed, Langston said.
"Nothing went down easily," Langston said. "We earned every point we got."
As expected, Saturday's match versus Washington brought the biggest challenge for MSU, as it was a more physical match than the Spartans had faced this year, Erbe said.
MSU trailed Washington in kills, attack percentage and defensive digs.
No Spartan reached double-digit kills in the final match, although freshman setter Maggie Griffin set 24 balls and had seven digs while Huskies sophomore setter Courtney Thompson returned with 40 sets, eight digs, one service ace and one kill.
While disappointed with the loss, Erbe was pleased with how the Spartans performed this past weekend.
"I've seen this team come undone and lose their poise in situations like we faced this weekend," he said.
Griffin said despite the loss on Saturday, playing volleyball is more enjoyable when facing tougher competition like Witchita State, as well as other teams the Spartans will face later in the season.
"I'd rather play harder teams," Griffin said. "We fought all the way."
MSU will continue their travels this weekend when they compete in the Gamecock Invitational at Columbia, S.C., where the Spartans will face Notre Dame, South Carolina and USC.
After this weekend's road games, Erbe said the team handled leaving home court well.
"They passed the test," he said.
