Kentucky VB goes into Starkville and leaves with 3-1 win over Mississippi State

Kentucky volleyball extended its winning streak to a dozen on Friday night in Starkville.

The No. 3 Wildcats picked up another big SEC road win with a 3-1 victory over Mississippi State (25-13, 18-25, 25-12, 25-18) in the Newell-Groissom Volleyball Center. All-American hitter Brooklyn DeLeye led the way for Kentucky with a 21-kill, 10-dig performance. She was aided by a pair of double-digit scorers as Eva Hudson and Lizzie Carr combined for 26 kills.

As a team, Kentucky hit .288 on the night, fueled by another impressive performance from star freshman setter Kassie O’Brien, who is fresh off another weekly honor from the Southeastern Conference. O’Brien totaled 46 assists against MSU, helping four different Wildcats reach at least nine kills.

Kentucky dominated the first, third, and fourth sets, refusing to let Mississippi State score more than 18 points in any of them. The Bulldogs did manage to steal the second set with ease, but Craig Skinner’s squad proved exactly why this is a national title contender from that point forward. Meanwhile, MSU hit just .128 for the match and recorded 23 hitting errors.

Sorry, we can't be dog people today 😏#WeAreUK x @SEC pic.twitter.com/5tXsAYfaQ9

— Kentucky Volleyball (@KentuckyVB) October 25, 2025

Kentucky dominated the opening set, 25-13, holding Mississippi State to an abysmal .026 hitting percentage. UK jumped out to an early lead, which was up to as many as 13 points, and never looked back. But the Bulldogs would emphatically respond, jumping out to an 8-1 set two lead that would hold the rest of the way despite a late rally from the ‘Cats, knotting the match at 1-1.

This wasn’t unfamiliar territory for Kentucky, though. It was just this past Sunday that the ‘Cats overcame a 2-1 set deficit to a talented Florida team before eventually winning a five-set thriller. Skinner had his crew ready to bounce back after a disappointing second set against the Bulldogs.

It wasn’t as easy as set one, but Kentucky got off to a solid start in set three. A 9-5 lead quickly ballooned to a 15-7 advantage for the ‘Cats. UK hit .581 for the set while holding MSU to .000 en route to a 25-12 set win and a commanding 2-1 match lead. The fourth and final set included some drama, Kentucky clinging to a 15-12 lead late. But the Bulldogs couldn’t muster up enough fight before falling 25-18 and ultimately losing the match.

Another SEC win keeps Kentucky, now sitting on a 15-2 record this season, perfect in conference play (8-0) ahead of another road showdown on Sunday against Alabama. That match will begin at 3:00 p.m. ET on the SEC Network+. Will the winning streak continue?

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