Seniors Get their Last Win in Seymour

Seniors Vaterra Calais, Bailey Jefferson, and Paige Hall played their final game in Seymour on Sunday, November 4. The Lady Jags faced the Grambling State University Tigers for the Senior Night game and won the match in just 3 sets.
Senior middle blocker Paige Hall, says she is happy to win, even though the game didn’t go as expected for her. “It was great to win. It didn’t go exactly how I planned in my head. There were a few errors at the end, but I’m grateful for the four years that I’ve spent here,” said Hall.
Both teams came out in the first set with high energy. The set began very fast paced, with the two teams going point for point. Eventually, the Lady Jags pulled away with a 5 point lead making the score 10-5. The Lady Tigers came back and tied the game at 10 points. The Lady Jags then came back with a 9 point lead, making the score 19-10. Grambling scored a few more points, but could not catch back up. The final score for the set was Southern 25, Grambling 13.
The Lady Jags started the game with a small lead, but the Lady Tigers were able to tie the game up at 4 points. When the score reached 5-5, there was a slight delay as the referee decided if Southern’s junior right side hitter Brianna Hawkins, hit the ball in or out. Grambling fans were upset when he decided that she hit the ball on the line, giving the point to Southern. The Lady Jags ended up gaining a 6 point lead, making the score 11-5. Grambling was once again unable to make a come back. P. Hall got the game winning kill. This set’s final score was Southern 25, Grambling 13.
The final set started with the Lady Jags having the lead once again, but this time the Lady Tigers were able to make a come back, tying the game at 19 points. A timeout was called by Southern Head Coach, Vanessa Jacobs. The Lady Jags scored 3 points immediately after the timeout, making the score 22-19. Grambling Head Coach, Demetria Keys-Johnson then called a time out. Keys-Johnson called another time out when the Lady Jags reach 24 points. Junior middle blocker Arabella Hall got the match-winning kill. The final score of the last set was Southern 25, Grambling 21.
Throughout the entire match, P. Hall, Brianna Hawkins, A. Hall, and junior outside hitter Shelby Jolly were playing strong defensively. They were blocking so well, that the Lady Tigers were forced to change their strategy, tipping and roll shotting more often to avoid being blocked.
A. Hall says she feels like she played well tonight because she was relaxed. “I feel like when I play good I am more relaxed, so whenever we go into the games just be more relaxed. We just need to focus on what we gotta do and just get in the game and do it so we can go home with a win,” says A. Hall.
Jacobs wants to take the momentum from their recent winning streak into the SWAC Tournament. “What we wanted to do was gain momentum from the season into the 3rd half of our season. We have preseason, season, and we have post season. Our players are playing well and they’re believing that they can win and that’s the difference. When you change your mindset you’re able to do just about anything,” said Jacobs.
The 2018 Volleyball SWAC Tournament is hosted by Mississippi Valley State University. It begins next Friday, November 16 in Itta Bena, Mississippi.