Ole Miss opened the Jayhawk Classic on Friday night and ran straight into a top‑25 Kansas team that never really loosened its grip.
The Rebels dropped the match 3-0 at Horejsi Family Volleyball Arena, falling to 6-4 on the season as they continue to work through the final stretch of nonconference play.
Melia Johnson led Ole Miss with eight kills and three digs, steady throughout a night where clean swings were hard to come by.
The Rebels also got a boost from Keirstyn Carlton, who returned from injury and immediately made an impact. She finished with four kills on .444 hitting and added four blocks, giving Ole Miss one of its more consistent presences at the net.
The first set stayed tight for most of the opening half. Ole Miss hung around thanks to six Kansas service errors and a few well‑timed swings from Shayla Meyer, who helped keep the Rebels within a point at the technical timeout.
Kansas finally created separation with a small run to go up 19-15, and even with late kills from Carly Paugh and Carlton, Ole Miss couldn’t close the gap. The Jayhawks took the set 25-19.
The Rebels responded with their best stretch of the night early in the second set. The block started to settle in, and Kansas struggled to find clean angles, leading to an early 9-6 Ole Miss lead.
Kansas recovered quickly, but Ole Miss didn’t fade.
A 4-0 run tied the set at 20-20, sparked by a Meyer ace and a Carlton-Hartsifeld block. Ole Miss thought it had tied the score again at 21-21, but a Kansas challenge flipped the point and shifted momentum. Kansas held on to win 25-22.
The third set belonged to Kansas from the start. The Jayhawks forced an early Ole Miss timeout at 11-7 and stretched the lead to 15-10 at the break.
Ole Miss tried to regroup, but Kansas kept applying pressure and closed out the match with a 25-13 finish.
Ole Miss wraps up the Jayhawk Classic and its nonconference slate Saturday against Grand Canyon. First serve is scheduled for 2 p.m. on ESPN+.
