OXFORD, Miss.--  Friday wasn't a good day on the court for the McNeese volleyball team as the Cowgirls dropped a straight set loss 3-0 (19-25, 18-25, 18-25) at the hands of North Carolina State at the Ole Miss Lady Rebel Invitational.
 
The Cowgirls (1-4) were tagged with 13 service errors and committed 12 hitting errors to end the match with a .209 hitting percent as a team. North Carolina State had a .315 team hitting percent.
 
"After this match, I'm really glad we get to try again on Saturday," said head coach Ashleigh Fitzgerald.
 
North Caroline controlled the match from the first serve, as the Cowgirls couldn't get into a rhythm. The Cowgirls trailed 12-6 in the opening set and rallied for four straight points behind the serve of Haley Schneider. During that run, the Cowgirls got kills from Alexandra Aguilera and Jenny D'Alessandro and an ace by Schneider. McNeese would get as close as one point (19-18) but would only manage to score one more point the rest of the set.
 
"The Wolfpack really put it on us today. They passed really well and seemed to always be in the system," said Fitzgerald. "I also think playing in a large, fancy venue like The Pavillion played with our heads a little. We need matches like this to mature, and I think we will play a lot better Saturday.
 
The Wolfpack continued to control the match in the next two sets by taking the lead early in both and never getting a threat from the Cowgirls.
 
Schneider and Aguilera led McNeese in kills with six apiece. Aguilera also dished out 19 assists and Bridget Justis picked up 15 digs.
 
North Carolina State was led in kills by Julia Brown's 10. She also had 15 digs and Rachel Eppley picked up 10. Setter Maggie Speaks recorded a match-high 26 assists.
 
McNeese will conclude tournament play on Saturday with a 1 p.m. match against Ole Miss and a 5 p.m. match against Texas-Arlington.
 
Streaming will be provided for the Ole Miss match while live stats will be provided for both matches. Links can be found on mcneesesports.com.