Florida A&M

JACKSON, Miss. – Florida A&M Volleyball stayed perfect on a Mississippi road swing this weekend, as the Rattlers took down Jackson State by a 3-1 decision Sunday afternoon in Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Volleyball inside Williams Athletics and Assembly Center in Jackson, Mississippi. The Rattlers collected the win on a line score of 25-17, 25-21, 23-25, 25-19.
 
Florida A&M (8-9, 3-1 SWAC) took the first set by hitting .409 while Jackson State hit .000, with nine kills and nine errors on 27 swings. A 3-3 tie became an 8-3 FAMU advantage on a 5-0 run, and the Rattlers pulled away after JSU cut it to 12-10. A solo block by Tamia Coleman and an ace from senior setter Bengisu Kazazlar capped a 3-0 run that made it 18-13 in favor of the guests.
 
The Rattlers trailed 10-3 in the second set, but came back.
 
Down 18-16, the Orange and Green scored five consecutive points.
 
Junior libero Victoria Santana served back-to-back aces to tie it at 18-18 and make it 19-18, and senior outside hitter Sydney Whitfield followed with two kills. The Tigers tied it at 21-21 with three straight points, but the Rattlers closed on a 4-0 run, with kills from senior outside hitter Iyonnie Sanford and senior middle blocker Farah Farooq, a Makenzie Taylor ace and an attack error by Hope Briggs.
 
JSU (7-11, 3-2 SWAC) won the third set after erasing a 13-7 deficit with an 8-1 run. Dove had five kills without an error in the set, and her kill ended it.
 
The Rattlers responded in the fourth to close out the match and the victory.
 
They turned a 7-7 tie into an 11-7 lead on a 4-0 run, and Coleman added a kill and two solo blocks in the set. Farooq had six kills on 11 swings without an error, and the last four FAMU points were all her kills.
 
Once again, Whitfield led the Rattlers on the afternoon with 15 kills and 12 digs, tallying her fifth double-double of the season. Sophomore outside hitter LaDonna Trantham added 13 kills and 10 digs – her fifth double-double of the campaign as well.
 
And it was Farooq rounding out the double-digit kills for the Orange and Green with 12 of her own while also hitting at a .333 clip. Kazazlar finished with 22 assists and 10 digs, allowing her a second double-double outing of the year.
 
Fellow setter Taylor had 19 assists as well.
 
Defensively for the Rattlers, Santana pulled in 16 digs and served up four aces for the Rattlers. For the Windemere, Florida native, it was her third double-digit digs performance of the season, and her first since September 18, respectfully.
 
Overall, throughout the match, FAMU outhit Jackson State .219 to .143 and held a 14 to 6 edge in aces, which proved big for the visitors.
 
Briggs had 14 kills and five block assists for Jackson State, but she also committed nine errors. Kyra Dove added eight kills, and Naija Gadis had 21 assists for the homestanding Tigers, who dropped both legs of a weekend tilt to the "Sunshine State" teams in the league, respectively.
 
The Rattlers return home Wednesday, October 7, at 6 p.m., when welcoming in-state opponent Bethune-Cookman for a key SWAC showdown inside Al Lawson Center on the FAMU campus.
 
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