This Sunday, the Auburn Tigers (10-2, 1-0) will compete in a home matchup against the Mississippi State Bulldogs (11-0, 1-0) in their second conference matchup of the season.
The Tigers are in high spirits, coming off a sweep of one of their biggest rivals, the Alabama Crimson Tide, on Friday, in which they won each round 25-21, 25-19, and 25-19, respectively.
“First of all, what a great crowd. Over 3,000 people, the second-largest crowd in program history. I cannot thank the Auburn Family enough. It means so much to this team and to me to see the genuine support of this community. It for sure made a difference tonight,” said Auburn head coach Brent Crouch of the crowd at Neville Arena.
This crowd came second only to the crowd during the Tigers’ matchup against the Texas Longhorns on September 29, 2024, just one day shy of a year from Sunday’s matchup.
Lauren Dreves and Liz Markovska each had double-digit kills, with Dreves starting fast with eight kills on 18 swings and no errors. This contributed to a total of 14 kills for Dreves, who has now reached double digits for the fifth straight match as well as the 11th time this season. Markovska has also now reached double-digit kills in eight matches this season after recording 10 on Friday, seven of which came in the third set, contributing to a .583 hitting percentage.
Defense was also a large factor for the Tigers, having 11 total blocks in the second set, and holding Alabama under .100 for the first two sets. Bel Zimmerman also had a great night, recording five blocks, making this her third straight match with at least five. Her first block, also being Auburn’s first point of the night, was the 200th block of her career.
Mississippi State had an exciting Friday as well, defeating No. 19 Florida in a back-and-forth affair 3-2 in Gainesville. The Bulldogs’ victory marks eleven straight, which ties their program’s record.
"The way they respond, communicate, and execute is something special. I love how this was a total team win, and everyone did their part. This was not about 2 or 3 people - this took all of us!” said Mississippi State head coach Julie Darty Dennis.
This was certainly an impressive night all around for the Bulldogs, who held the Gators to a .237 hitting percentage across all five sets. Mele Corral-Blagojevich had a particularly active night, recording a career high 17 points with 14 kills, two service aces, two blocks, and four digs. Additionally, Lindsey Mangelson led the Bulldogs in kills, recording 16 over 50 attempts. Gha’Naye Whitfield-Moss led the team in blocks, totaling seven of the team’s 18 total.
Mangelson, who leads the SEC in points and kills per set, will be someone to keep an eye on during Sunday’s matchup. Auburn’s defense leads the SEC in digs per set and opponent hitting percentage as well, so this will no doubt be an exciting clash.
The Auburn Tigers will face off against the Mississippi State Bulldogs on September 28, 2025, in Auburn at 2:00 PM CDT at Neville Arena. This game will be available to stream on SECN+.
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Braden is a freshman majoring in Aviation Management. He started with the Plainsman in fall 2025.
