SAN ANGELO, Texas – Midwestern State volleyball started their second day at the Angelo State Invitational with a game against Texas A&M International on Saturday, Feb. 27. The team dropped the game 1-3 (25-19, 22-25, 21-25, 18-25) to go 1-1 in the two-day tournament.
 
The first set went well for the Mustangs with the team leading the entire set up to 25-19. Junior Taylor Anderson nabbed three kills and one block assist in the first, getting up to eight kills and two blocks for the game. The outside hitter tallied a .143 hitting percent for MSU.
 
Midwestern State grabbed their largest lead of the set at 22-16 following a kill by Lissette Lefforge, who garnered seven kills and two blocks. From there, the Mustangs were able to glide to the win.
 
The second set started on the flip side for MSU getting down 3-0 after two attack errors. The Mustangs rallied back to get within one point of TAMI with a kill by Lauryn Bourne and a block assist with her and Lefforge. Bourne totaled a season-high 15 kills and 17.5 points, leading MSU in both categories. The outside hitter also put in a good job on defense with 16 digs in the match.
 
Midwestern State pulled the score to 11 all with two kills by Raven Presley who moved back to right side hitter after playing in the middle against Western New Mexico on Friday, Feb. 26. Presley had ten kills for a .233 hitting percent against the Dustdevils.
 
From the tie game, MSU was able to grab a three-point lead and almost get the victory with a 21-18 score. A 6-1 run by Texas A&M International squashed the hope of the Mustangs and ended the second set 22-25.
 
The third set saw the Mustangs take off to a 5-2 lead, guided by a kill from sophomore Kaitlynn Stoker. The outside hitter totaled eight kills on 11 attacks with zero errors for a .727 hitting percent, which led both teams and is a season-high for the Allen, Texas native.
 
Alyssa Estrada-Hamby was close behind Stoker in hitting percent with .714. The middle blocker converted six kills on seven attacks with one error, her best of the season thus far. She also led her team in blocks with one solo and three assists for four total blocks.
 
Midwestern State continued to lead TAMI until the set was tied at 20s. From there, the Dustdevils took control and used a 7-1 run to get to 25.
 
In what would be the final set, setter Kaitlyn Masseth made seven of her 26 total assists for MSU. The team battled, but fell behind early and went down 18-25. Keetyn Davis took the cake for most digs for the Mustangs with 17, just one more than Bourne.
 
Midwestern State beat Texas A&M International on attacks and kills with 149 and 58. The opponents garnered a .221 hitting percent versus the Mustangs' .208. MSU finished with six blocks and four aces while TAMI had five and five.
 
The Mustangs have one more game in the Angelo State Invitational where they take on the hosts, Angelo State, on Saturday, Feb. 27, at 6 p.m.