LEXINGTON, Ky. – A day after upsetting Little Rock in the season opener, the IUPUI volleyball team looked to score more upsets as it took on #15 Kentucky and #19 Michigan State on Day 2 of the Bluegrass Battle. The Jags went toe-to-toe with their nationally ranked opponents, but it was the Wildcats and Spartans that emerged victorious with a pair of 3-0 wins.
 
The losses dropped the Jaguars to 1-2 on the season.
 
Kaitlyn Hickey paced the team offensively in both matches posting 11 kills  against the Wildcats, before finishing with 15 at a .379 clip against the Spartans.
 
In the opener against Kentucky, the tournament hosts couldn't have started any better as they seized an 11-2 lead in the opening set, before growing that lead to 11 at 20-9. Aggressive serving and six Kentucky errors led a late charge that brought IUPUI within one at 24-23, but an Emily Franklin kill secured the opening-set win for the Wildcats.
 
Another slow start in the second set put the Jags behind the eight ball and eventually UK was able to extend its lead to six at 18-12. Every time IUPUI looked like it had a chance to creep back within three points, a Jaguars miscue kept the Kentucky lead at a comfortable margin. Down the stretch, the Wildcats started to regain their form and they cruised to a 25-18 second-set win.
 
Out of the 10-minute break, the Jags got off to a better start and won three of the first five points to take its first lead of the match. The score was tied as late as 13-13, before UK was able to make a little push to open an 18-15 lead. The Wildcats lead grew to four at 23-19, but a kill from Hickey and a block from Abby Boatman and Hickey cut the deficit in half at 23-21. Unfortunately, a service error from the Jags and a UK kill closed out the contest, 25-21.
 
In the nightcap against the Spartans, both teams went back-and-forth early until a Spartans run that resulted in them taking seven points during a nine-point stretch opened a 15-10 lead. IUPUI closed within four five times, but each time Michigan State had a response before eventually claiming a 25-18 win.
 
After registering seven kills in the first set against the Spartans, the Jags offense was more efficient to start the second set as seven of their first 10 points were kills en route to a 10-9 lead. The score remained tied at 13-13, but the Spartans captured nine of the next 14 points to take a 22-18 lead. From that point, MSU won the next three points to finish off another 25-18 win.
 
Similar to the second set, IUPUI went point-for-point with Michigan State in the third set until a mid-set rally from the Spartans turned a tie game into a 16-12 lead. Hickey did her best to keep the Jags in the set with three kills of her own, but MSU proved to be too strong as it held on for the 25-19 third-set win.
 
Up next for the Jags is their home opener on Wednesday, Sept. 2, against Ball State. First serve is set for 7 p.m. and the match will be streamed live on IUPUIJags.com.