Middle Tennessee volleyball took the opportunity Tuesday night to honor its international student athletes during a match against Tennessee State University. The Blue Raiders (9-7, 1-3 CUSA) entered the match on a three-game losing streak, facing Tennessee State (1-16, 0-5 OVC), their last non-conference opponent of the regular season.
MTSU boasts five international players including freshman Khalia-Leigh James (Canada) and Ana Stojicic (Serbia), sophomore Nora Marginean (Romania), junior Michaela Dlouha (Czechia), and graduate student Isil Yilmaz (Turkey).
To celebrate the international players, MTSU displayed the flags of their home countries on the court during pre-game activities.
“It’s always a great feeling to see my flag,” Yilmaz said. “Sometimes it’s hard being away from family, but today feels really special for me. It was great. A few of my friends who are Turkish as well came, and it made them very happy to see.”
The sentiment spread to other Blue Raiders as well.
“It was amazing to see my flag, I wish I could take it home,” Dlouha said.
MTSU took advantage of early mistakes by Tennessee State, who committed seven errors in the first set, leading to a 25-17 win for the Blue Raiders. TSU continued to struggle in the second set, committing nine errors as MTSU cruised to a 25-17 victory to go up 2-0.
The Tigers cleaned up their play in the third set, committing just three errors, and fought back with seven ties and four lead changes. However, MTSU carried their momentum from the first two sets and won the third set 25-17 to secure a 3-0 sweep to snap their losing streak.
“We’re just happy to be back at home,” MTSU head coach Alexa Keckler said. “Playing here at our home gym with a good crowd feels good to be back in the win column. Every weekend is going to be a battle, so we have to be sure we’re ready to step onto the court and compete and make changes when necessary.”
MTSU will return to action this weekend, traveling to Newark, Delaware, to face the University of Delaware (5-8, 2-2 CUSA) on Friday, Oct. 10, and Saturday, Oct. 11. The Blue Raiders will then host Liberty University (14-3, 2-2 CUSA) for a pair of matches on Friday, Oct. 17, and Saturday, Oct 18, at Alumni Memorial Gymnasium in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
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