Volleyball Voices

Virginia Volleyball Team: Cavaliers Earn History Win, Upset No. 25 Florida State, 3-2

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Virginia Volleyball Team: Cavaliers Earn History Win, Upset No. 25 Florida State, 3-2
First victory over a ranked opponent since 1996
 
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - The Virginia volleyball team earned its second-ever win over a nationally ranked opponent Sunday afternoon, defeating No. 25 Florida State, 3-2 (25-18, 25-13, 18-25, 19-25, 16-14), in Memorial Gymnasium. The win marks head coach Lee Maes' first over a nationally ranked opponent, while it's the first time Virginia has downed a top-25 foe since defeating No. 22 Georgia Tech in four sets at home on Oct. 5, 1996.
 
"We take the same approach in preparation for every opponent whether they're ranked or not," Maes said. "This was a great win for us because we have been improving throughout the season. In this win, we are seeing the fruits of our efforts, focus and commitment. We have a lot of belief in ourselves and we love that our team has positively and appropriately responded to the setbacks that we had earlier in the year."
 
With the win, the Cavaliers split this season's meetings with the Seminoles, as then-No. 13 Florida State defeated Virginia, 3-0, in Tallahassee on Sept. 24. It also improves Virginia to 12-11 this year and 6-7 in the ACC, while Florida State drops to 15-8 overall and 7-6 in league play.
 
With the set tied at 14 all in the deciding frame, the Cavaliers received back-to-back kills from junior Simone Asque and freshman McKenzie Adams to clinch their first win over Florida State since 2007, and 14th victory of the 43 meetings in the all-time series.
 
Four Cavaliers tallied double-figure kills on the afternoon - a first for Virginia this season. Led by Asque's 20 kills, sophomore Jess O'Shoney hit a match-high .650 and knocked down 14 kills, while Adams added 13 kills and freshman Emily Rottman tacked on 10 kills.
 
Rottman, who landed four aces, also had 19 digs to notch her fourth career double-double, and second consecutive, while redshirt sophomore Beth Wildermuth shared team-high honors in digs, also earning 19. In addition, the setter dished out 49 assists to record her fifth double-double of the season.
 
Other team leaders included senior AJ Cushman, who tallied 18 digs, and junior Tess Udall who collected a career-high eight digs. Offensively, senior Sydney Hill had eight kills, hit .467 and contributed three blocks.
 
For Florida State, Visnja Djurdjevic led the way with 20 kills and 22 digs, while Stephanie Neville had 17 kills and Fatma Yildirim added 12. Duygu Duzceler dished out 31 assists and had 10 digs, while Jenna Romanelli had a match-high 27 digs. Ashley Neff led the charge at the net, blocking a match-high nine attacks.

The Cavaliers got out to a commanding 1-0 lead in the match following a hot start in the first frame. Jumping out to an 11-7 advantage, Virginia didn't look back. Never trailing in the set, the Cavaliers worked their lead to eight, at 22-14, en route to a 25-18 set win.
 
Virginia carried the momentum into the second stanza and built a 7-0 cushion before the Seminoles were able to get on the board. Florida State cut its deficit to two, at 10-8, but Cushman landed a service ace to spark a 9-0 run for Virginia that put UVa up, 19-8. From there, the Cavaliers cruised to a 25-13 victory.
 
Florida State used a 4-0 run midway through the third frame to take its first lead of the match, at 16-14. Another 4-0 run by the Seminoles gave Florida State a 20-15 advantage and the Cavaliers were unable to recover, as the visitors went on to win, 25-18.
 
The Seminoles broke open an even 15-15 fourth set with a 3-0 run, pushing them ahead, 18-15. Florida State then took five of the next seven points to pull away 23-17, and evened the match at 2-2 with a 25-19 victory.
 
The fifth frame was a close battle throughout. Featuring seven tie scores and two lead changes, the stanza was knotted for the sixth time at 13 before Hill gave Virginia its first set-point opportunity, knocking down a kill. The Seminoles rallied behind a kill from Neville to force extra points, but Asque and Adams came up with the back-to-back points Virginia needed to secure the 16-14 win for the Cavaliers.
 
Virginia will return to Memorial Gymnasium next weekend to host its final home matches of the season. The Cavaliers will face Maryland on Friday, before taking on Boston College Saturday. Both contests are slated to begin at 7 p.m., with Virginia's seniors being honored prior to the start of the Boston College match.

No. 8 USC Women’s Volleyball Team Defeats No. 7 Washington In Five Sets

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NO. 8 USC Women’s Volleyball Team Defeats NO. 7 Washington In Five Sets

LOS ANGELES – Junior All-American Alex Jupiter (Paris, France/Redondo Union HS) recorded 30 kills and 14 digs Saturday as the No. 8 USC Women of Troy defeated the No. 7 Washington Huskies, 3-2 (15-25, 25-17, 25-19, 23-25, 15-13), in Pac-10 Conference action at the Galen Center.  Jupiter hit .414 (30-6-58) in the match and was one off her career best of 31 kills set last year at Arizona State.

Kendall Bateman had 57 assists and 12 digs for the Trojans (19-3, 8-3) while freshman outside hitter Falyn Fonoimoana had a season-high 21 kills with eight digs and two aces in a .311 performance (21-7-45).  Freshman middle blocker Alexis Olgard had eight kills in a .571 afternoon (8-0-14) with three blocks (two solo) while freshman Natalie Hagglund had 23 digs.

Becky Perry led Washington (17-5, 6-5) with 21 kills and eight digs while hitting .320 for the match.  Jenna Hagglund registered 59 assists with two kills, two aces, seven digs and two blocks.  Bianca Rowland hit .500 (15-3-24) with 15 kills and three blocks while Kindra Carlson had the double-double with 11 kills and 14 digs.

The Huskies dominated the Trojans early in the match, building a commanding 16-6 lead in the first set.  Perry posted seven kills in the first set alone as Carlson’s kill ended the set as UW hit a match-high .417, committing just two attack errors.

Trailing 9-7 in the second set, USC got back in the match with a run of seven straight points.  The Huskies could not get closer than a five-point deficit as Jupiter went back-to-back terminations to tie the match.  Another run of six straight points aided the Women of Troy in the third set as they took the 10-6 lead.  Rowland kept the deficit at four, 19-15, but Jupiter came back with a kill and a service ace from senior Geena Urango pushed the Trojans to the 2-1 lead in the match.

Washington held its own in the fourth set as both teams fought their way to a 22-22 score.  Kylin Munoz put the advantage back to the Huskies as Jupiter’s hitting error gave set point to UW.  Carlson had a service error, but Rowland forced the deciding set with a kill for the Huskies.

In the fifth set, Olgard gave USC a 7-4 lead, but the Huskies climbed back with three straight points.  Jupiter hit a key kill for the 8-7 lead at the side switch.  Jupiter hit another kill as Washington burned its final timeout of the set, trailing 10-8.  Carlson and Fonoimoana had two kills each as USC maintained the lead, 12-10.  Perry hit her final kill of the match for the 12-11 score, but Fonoimoana once again came through to put it at 13-11.  Carlson sided out for the Huskies, but a critical service error by Kelcey Dunaway gave match point to USC, 14-12.  Rowland terminated again for UW on Urango’s serve, but it was Jupiter who tallied her 30th kill of the match to give the victory to the Trojans.

Today’s match was broadcast by FOX Sports Net nationally on a delayed basis.  The match will be shown in southern California on FSN Prime Ticket on Sunday at 5 p.m., on Tuesday (Nov. 2) at 10 a.m., on Thursday (Nov. 4) at 11 p.m. and on Friday (Nov. 5) at 10 a.m.

USC travels to California next Friday (Nov. 5) at 7 p.m. and Stanford on Sunday (Nov. 7) at 1 p.m.  Both matches will feature a live audio broadcast on usctrojans.com.

Notes: USC is now 5-1 in five-set matches this season and a perfect 6-0 in televised matches…Alex Jupiter moved into fifth place on USC’s career list for points (1,417.5), passing Emily Adams (2001-04) and Asia Kaczor (2006-07) after tonight’s 31.5-point effort…Kendall Bateman moved into eighth place on USC’s career list for assists (2,560), passing Sue Peters (1989-92)…USC head coach Mick Haley is one win away from recording 20 wins in a season for the eighth time in his 10 seasons with the Trojans…Lauren Williams had a season-high eight blocks in tonight’s match, tying her personal career best set four times previous…USC is now 62-8 all-time at the Galen Center.

UW                25-17-19-25-13
USC       15-25-25-23-15

Records: USC (19-3, 8-3), Washington (17-5, 6-5)
Kills: Alex Jupiter 30 (USC), Becky Perry 21 (UW)

Team:   UW      USC
1       .417    .154
2       .024    .316
3       .333    .407
4       .297    .222
5       .350    .368
Match   .267    .277

VCU Volleyball Team Rallies To Defeat Hofstra In Five Sets

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VCU Volleyball Team Rallies To Defeat Hofstra In Five Sets 
 

Hempstead, NY - Mariel Frey had 11 kills and 16 digs for VCU, while Kristin Boyd added 10 kills and six blocks to offset strong efforts from senior setter Rachel August (51 assists and 11 digs) and graduate student outside hitter Marina Markovic (18 kills and six digs) as VCU rallied to defeat Hofstra in five sets on Sunday afternoon in the Physical Education Building.

VCU won by scores of 20-25, 25-17, 22-25, 25-19 and 15-13 to improve to 10-17 overall and 8-3 in conference play.  Hofstra falls to 10-21 and 2-9 in Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) action with the loss.

It was August's team-leading sixth double-double of the season, while sophomore libero Kylee Maneja led the Pride with 16 digs.  A stellar defensive showing in the first set allowed Hofstra to earn a 25-20 victory.  Hofstra held the visiting Rams to a negative  .148 hitting percentage in the set as they forced VCU into 11 attack errors and added three blocks. 

Hofstra trailed 9-5 early on in the set until the Pride put together a 12-4 run to take a 17-13 lead on a kill from sophomore middle blocker Carolyn Jenkins.  Hofstra would never trail again in the set and a kill from freshman outside hitter Shelby Young would put Hofstra ahead 1-0 in the match.The Rams rallied to even the match at one set apiece with an eight-point win in the second stanza.  VCU would score 10 of the first 13 points in the set and never look back in posting the 25-17 win. 

Markovic had four kills for the Pride in the second set, while redshirt freshman outside hitter Nikki Kinnier chipped in with four kills.  VCU looked to be in control in the third stanza as they started the set on a 8-1 run and led 20-18 late following a kill from Kelsie Clegg. 

Hofstra rallied, though, as a kill from freshman middle blocker Ayesha Hein kick-started a quick 3-0 scoring run that put the Pride in front 21-20.  With the score tied at 22 later in the set an attack error by the Rams was followed by a kill from Young and a service ace from Kinnier to allow the Pride to win by the score of 25-22 and take the lead in the match.Needing a win to send the match to a fifth and final set, VCU broke an eight-all tie with three straight points and never looked back en route to the 25-19 win.  The Rams had their strongest offensive set of the match in the fourth set as they hit at a .433 clip with 15 kills on 30 attempts with just two errors. 

The final set was a back and forth affair as VCU led 10-6 before Hofstra rallied back to tie it at 11 on an attack error from the Rams.  Young produced a pair of kills during the run, while Kinnier added a service ace to assist in the Pride's efforts.  With the set knotted at 11, Frey responded with back-to-back kills to push the lead to 13-11 in favor of the Rams before Markovic added another kill to close the deficit to 13-12. 

Boyd would give the Rams a match point with a kill of her own and after a another kill from Markovic, a ball-handling error on the Pride would end the match and allow VCU to win the contest.Kinnier finished with 13 kills and seven digs for the Pride, while Young added 12 kills and three blocks.  Jenkins had nine kills and five blocks.Boyd also had six blocks for the Rams, while Bridget Camacho added 18 assists and 11 digs.

Hofstra celebrated "Senior Day" prior to the match and honored its three seniors (Rachel August, Jenna Connell and Marina Markovic) in a pre-match ceremony.  The Pride return to action next Saturday when they travel to Northeastern for a 7 p.m. match.

 

Auburn Volleyball Team: Tigers Fall At Kentucky In Three Sets

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Auburn Volleyball Team: Tigers Fall At Kentucky In Three Sets

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Auburn volleyball team dropped a three-set match to
the Kentucky Wildcats Sunday afternoon, 3-0 (16-25, 24-26, 23-25), at
the Memorial Coliseum. The loss brought the Tigers to 16-10 on the
season and 7-7 in the SEC.

“It was a tough loss for us today,” head coach Wade Benson said. “We are
going to have to regroup this week at practice and be prepared for
another tough SEC weekend at home.”

Sophomore Sarah Bullock led all attackers with 11 kills, while junior
Kelly Fidero finished with six and freshman Kathia Rud had five. Seniors
Morgan Johns and Alyssa Davis and freshman Camila Jersonsky each tallied
four kills for the Tigers. Christina Solverson had a team-best 16
assists on the day.

Defensively, senior Liz Crouch had 10 digs and redshirt freshman Vesela
Zapryanova finished with nine digs for Auburn. Jersonsky, Davis and
Johns each had three blocks, while Rud tallied two blocks.

Lauren Rapp and Becky Pavan finished with 10 kills each for Kentucky
(13-11, 7-7 SEC). Christine Hartmann and Stephanie Klefot recorded 13
digs apiece, while Hartmann had a match-high 31 assists.

The first set opened with Kentucky taking a quick 7-0 lead. Kills by
Johns and Bullock cut the Wildcat lead to five at 9-4 and kills from
Jersonsky and Bullock kept the Tigers within six points at 14-8.
Kentucky, however, was too much in the first set and won by a score of
25-16.

A kill by Davis and a pair of Wildcat errors gave the Tigers a 5-2
advantage at the start of the second set, but Kentucky fought back to
tie the score at eight apiece and a four-point Wildcat rally gave the
home team a 12-9 lead. Auburn utilized a 12-2 run, highlighted by three
kills and a block from Jersonsky, to go up 22-15. However, Kentucky
wasn’t finished as the Wildcats capped the set with a 12-2 run of
their own to win 26-24.

The two squads battled in the final set until Auburn rattled off a
five-point rally to hold a 9-4 lead. A kill from Fidero and a block from
Davis and Rud pushed the Tigers to a six-point 12-6 advantage. The
Wildcats, however, capitalized on a 6-1 rally to come within a point at
19-18 and then tied it up at 20-20. Kentucky finished out the set with a
25-23 win.

Auburn returns home to host a pair of SEC East opponents in South
Carolina and No. 1 Florida. The Tigers take on the Gamecocks at 7 p.m.
on Nov. 5 and follow with a 1 p.m. match against the top-ranked Gators
on Nov. 7. Both matches will be played at the Student Activities Center
and admission is free.

Southern Miss Volleyball Team Earns 3-1 Victory over UAB

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Southern Miss Volleyball Team Earns 3-1 Victory over UAB
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Southern Miss volleyball team kept their winning streak alive Sunday with a 3-1 (29-27, 25-18, 22-25, 25-19) victory against UAB. The Golden Eagles have now won seven consecutive Conference USA matches.
 
The Golden Eagles (15-9, 8-5) had three players with double-digit kills. Redshirt junior Ashley Mell led the squad with 20, while junior Lauren Sears and freshman Shelby Schacher posted 14 and 10, respectively. Junior setter Kelsea Seymour registered 48 assists. Junior Lisa Knecht and Mell tied for match-high honors with 29 digs apiece with Seymour and Schacher tallying 11 digs each. Sears led the team with a team-high six total blocks. Knecht and sophomore Elizabeth Rinaudo each had two aces.
 
Southern Miss totaled 63 kills with an attacking percentage of .219. The squad also posted 91 digs and 9.0 total team blocks. The Blazers finished the day with 64 kills, 88 digs and 10.0 team blocks.
 
“Ashley Mell stepped up and had a solid all-around performance,” Coach Abbey Sutherland said. “I’m proud of the team for stepping up on the road this weekend and having guts during crunch time. I think Shelby (Schacher) did a great job of filling in for Halie.”
 
Even though there were 12 ties, the Golden Eagles never trailed in the opening set. The team battled back and forth with the first 12 points. Southern Miss took the lead for good as Sarah Jane Bowden sparked Southern Miss into action with a kill. Knecht notched an ace and Sears posted a kill before Amelia Hendrickson and Sears added a block for the 10-6 lead. UAB's Alison Woods and Ally Slaughter put down kills to get the score 10-8. The Golden Eagles got a point back from a Sears kill, but UAB got a block and kill to get within one, 11-10.  Southern Miss extended its lead to 14-11 on kills from Mell and Sears in between an UAB error.  USM held a 19-16 lead, but out of a UAB timeout, the Blazers rallied to get within one, 20-19, which forced the Eagles to take a timeout as well. From there, the set turned into a furious battle as the score was tied seven times down the stretch before two UAB attack errors ended the set, giving USM the 29-27 win.

The first eight points of the second set mirrored the first set before USM got two kills and an ace for the 7-4 lead. The Eagles extended their lead to 13-8 before UAB called its first timeout. The timeout failed to slow the Eagles as USM took a 16-8 lead. UAB got back-to-back kills but a Blazer service error and consecutive kills from Mell gave the Eagles a 19-10 lead. Out of the UAB timeout, USM added a point for a double digit lead 20-10, but UAB came roaring back behind Jordan McDonald who tallied three kills in helping UAB cut the lead to 21-16. Following the USM timeout, Southern Miss outscored UAB, 4-2, for the 25-18 win.
 
UAB got off to a good start in the third set with a kill by Slaughter and a block by Michelle Uzoh and McDonald, but three kills from Seymour, a kill from Mell and a block from Bowden and Mell pushed the Eagles ahead 5-4. UAB tied the set after an Eagle attack error, but Bowden and Mell had back-to-back putaways sparking a 5-1 run to go up 10-6. After a Blazer timeout, UAB’s Kate Morrell jump started an 11-6 run with a kill as UAB took a 17-16 lead.  Southern Miss battled back using a 6-4 run for the 22-21 lead. After taking its last timeout, UAB then ended the set with two kills from McDonald and an Eagle error and block for the 25-22 win.
 
The Golden Eagles took a 5-0 lead in the fourth set before an attack error gave UAB its first point. UAB recorded three more points, but USM managed to stay ahead, 6-4, on a Seymour kill. The score stayed close until Southern Miss took an 11-9 lead and extended it to 14-9 with kill from Schacher and block from Mell and Sears. USM led by as many as six points, 20-14, when UAB called its final timeout. UAB managed two more points but Southern Miss got three straight points on a Hendrickson kill and two Knecht aces for a 23-16 lead. Southern Miss closed out the set, 25-19, for a 3-1 match win.
 
The Golden Eagles head out on the road again with matches at UTEP (Nov. 5) and at UCF (Nov. 7).

Second Set Rally Lifts University of Kentucky Volleyball Team To Sweep of Auburn

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Second Set Rally Lifts University of Kentucky Volleyball Team To Sweep of Auburn
Senior Lauren Rapp moves into 10th all-time in career kills list at Kentucky

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky’s rally from seven points down late in the second set propelled the Blue and White to a 3-0 (25-16, 26-24, 25-23) sweep of visiting Auburn on Sunday at Memorial Coliseum. Senior Lauren Rapp notched 10 kills on the afternoon to move into sole possession of 10th place all-time on UK’s career kills list. Rapp now has 1,199 career hammers.
The Wildcats improve to 13-11 overall on the season and 7-7 in Southeastern Conference action. Auburn falls to 16-10 and 7-7 in league play.
 
Rapp was sensational for Kentucky as she led the team with 10 kills and a match-high seven blocks on the afternoon. Classmate Blaire Hiler chipped in with eight kills as the senior duo ignited the Wildcats to the impressive victory.
 
“In matches this season we’ve really struggled finishing sets and that was an obstacle we closed today by winning those last two sets the way we did in very tight situations,” UK coach Craig Skinner said. “I’m proud of our upperclassmen for stepping up late in those sets.”
 
UK faced its largest deficit in the second set when it trailed 22-15. Kentucky would close the frame on a 10-2 run, including scoring the final five points of the stanza to earn a 2-0 lead into the locker room.
 
Junior Becky Pavan matched Rapp’s kill output with 10 hammers while adding three blocks. Setter Christine Hartmann earned a double-double effort with 31 assists and a team-high 13 digs. Junior Gretchen Giesler added five kills, including UK’s final two points of the match, while contributing four block assists. Sophomore Stephanie Klefot led the Wildcats in digs for the 20th time this season with 13 scoops.
 
UK also received contributions from freshmen Whitney Billings who had three kills and six digs, while Jessi Greenberg added five scoops. Junior Ann Armes added two kills and served all four of the crucial points in the second set rally. Freshman Alexandra Morgan added a kill in the second stanza.
 
Kentucky opened up with a 7-0 run to begin the first set to easily take control. Pavan began at the service line and tacked on a pair of aces in addition to a pair of kills from Hiler. The Wildcats forced the Tigers into three hitting errors in the run. UK never relinquished the lead and maintained a comfortable advantage with Pavan capping off the frame with a kill.
 
UK limited the Tigers to a negative .152 hitting clip and just seven kills. The Wildcats posted five blocks in the set which proved to be the difference. Rapp had a pair of solo rejections and two block assists to pace the defensive effort.
 
In a second set that featured six tie scores and four lead changes it was the home team that eventually prevailed after fighting off a seven-point deficit. With Auburn leading 22-15, Kentucky earned its first point off of a Tiger miscue. Armes, Pavan and Hartmann teamed up for a triple-block as the momentum began to swing in the home team’s favor. The Tigers earned set point with the score at 24-21. UK then rattled off five straight points behind four kills from upperclassmen. Rapp, Hiler, Armes and Pavan all totaled a kill in the run for the 26-24 victory.
 
UK scored 16 points off of kills in the set on a .238 attacking percentage. Rapp led the offensive output with five kills in the set. Auburn totaled 17 kills on .279 hitting, but committed a combined 10 errors in the frame enabling UK’s comeback effort.
 
The third set was a back-and-forth battle that saw six tied scores and a pair of lead changes. Kentucky opened the scoring on a Pavan kill, but Auburn quickly captured a lead at 8-4 and would maintain a comfortable edge including a six-point advantage at 17-11. The Wildcats would eventually climb back into things to force a tie score at 20-20 on a kill from Hiler. Hiler then gave UK its second lead of the set at 22-21 with another kill. UK would go on to close the set with a pair of kills from Giesler to win 25-23.
 
Pavan totaled five kills in the set to lead the offensive output. UK posted a match-high 18 kills in the set with five players totaling two or more. Auburn managed just 12 kills on a .143 hitting clip.
 
Kentucky will return to action with a set of road matches next weekend. UK takes on Mississippi State on Friday, Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. ET. UK will then play Alabama at 2 p.m. ET on Fox Sports South.
 
Follow along all season long with the Wildcats at UKathletics.com.

Alabama Volleyball Team Falls to No. 16 LSU 3-0

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Alabama Volleyball Team Falls to No. 16 LSU 3-0
 
Alyssa Meuth collects a match-high 14 kills in the loss
 
BATON ROUGE, La. – The Alabama volleyball team dropped a 3-0 (25-18, 25-23, 25-21) decision Sunday at No. 16 LSU in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. With the loss, the Crimson Tide falls to 9-14 on the season and 1-12 against Southeastern Conference opponents, while the Tigers improve to 21-2 overall and 12-2 in the league.
 
Senior Alyssa Meuth led all attackers in the match with 14 kills, while sophomore Kelsey Anderson tallied a match-high 13 digs. Senior Kayla Schmidt and junior Stephanie Riley split the setting duties collecting 15 assists and 16 assists, respectively.
 
Alabama recorded the first two points of the match and remained in control until a block put LSU in front 7-6. The Tigers scored the next three consecutive points, all of which were earned, that led the Tide to use a timeout. Alabama pulled within two at 14-12 but would not come any closer as LSU used a 7-2 run to take its largest lead of the frame at 21-14. The Tide scored four additional points in the first before the Tigers closed out the set with a kill for the 25-18 win.
 
LSU capitalized on a trio of errors by Alabama to start the second. The Tide cut its deficit to one on four occasions with the final time coming at 24-23. With the score set at 24-21, Alabama rattled off a pair of points to close the gap, however an attack error by the Tide would award the second to the Tigers 25-23.
 
LSU stuck first in the final set of the match with a kill and failed to give up the lead throughout the duration. Alabama tied the third twice early on before the Tigers strung together an 11-6 run for the 13-8 advantage. The Tide bounced back and cut the LSU lead to one three times with the last coming at 19-18. From there, LSU scored three straight points to build a buffer once again and continued to lead by as many as three for the rest of the set. A kill would put the match away giving the Tigers the 25-21 win.
 
For the match, LSU hit .352 with 50 kills and 13 errors, while Alabama recorded a .192 hitting percentage with 39 kills and 19 errors. The Tigers had one more block than the Tide (5.0-4.0), however LSU did commit three more service errors than Alabama (8-5).
 
The Tide will play its next two matches in Tuscaloosa as it welcomes Tennessee and Kentucky to the CAVE. Alabama will take on the Lady Volunteers on Friday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. CT. Sunday’s match against the Wildcats is slated to begin at 1 p.m. CT and will air live on FSN.
 
--UA--
 

UAB Volleyball Team: McDonald Reaches 20 Kills, 20 Digs But UAB Falls To Southern Miss

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UAB Volleyball Team: McDonald Reaches 20 Kills, 20 Digs But UAB Falls To Southern Miss
Woods also posts double-double with 55 assists, 12 digs in four sets

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Jordan McDonald led all players with a career-high 21 kills Sunday and also added 20 digs for her team-leading eighth double-double of the season, but the UAB volleyball team lost 3-1 (29-27, 25-18, 22-25, 25-19) to Southern Miss at Bartow Arena.
 
McDonald, a senior from Birmingham, became the first UAB player to record at least 20 kills and 20 digs in a single match since Ivana Bozic posted 24 kills and 25 digs against Houston on Oct. 19, 2007.
 
Setter Alison Woods also notched a double-double with 55 assists and 12 digs. Her 55 assists tied for the fourth-highest four-set total in Conference USA this season. Woods also finished with a career-high six total blocks.
 
With the loss, UAB split a pair of league matches for the second weekend in a row. The Blazers now stand at 7-17 (4-8 C-USA), while Southern Miss improved to 15-9 (8-5 C-USA).
 
The teams were evenly matched in nearly every statistical category. The Blazers finished with one more kill (64-63), one more block (10-9) and just three more attack errors (24-21). The Golden Eagles had three more digs (91-88).
 
The biggest advantage for Southern Miss came in the serving game as it recorded six aces to one for UAB and just two errors to seven for the Blazers.
 
The Golden Eagles served three of those aces and the Blazers made three of their errors in the clinching fourth set, which was decided by six points.
 
Ashley Mell led Southern Miss with 20 kills and was one of two Golden Eagles to record 29 digs along with libero Lisa Knecht. Lauren Sears finished with 14 kills for Southern Miss, and Shelby Schacher added 10.
 
Sam Serley posted 14 kills and six blocks for UAB, while Ally Slaughter gave the Blazers three players in double-digit kills with 11. McDonald managed her 21 kills in 50 attempts with just three errors for an efficient .360 attack percentage.
 
The first set was back-and-forth with the teams trading points down the stretch. UAB evened the score seven times late in the set but was never able to take the lead. Tied for the last time at 27-27, the Blazers made back-to-back attack errors as Southern Miss grabbed the early advantage.
 
The Golden Eagles then controlled the second set to take a 2-0 lead into the intermission.
 
UAB refused to roll over despite trailing by four points on two occasions in the third. The Blazers rallied to take their first lead of the frame at 17-16. Southern Miss responded to take the advantage again at 22-21 on a kill by Mell, but that proved to be its last point of the set. Out of a timeout, UAB tallied four straight points, bookended by kills from McDonald, to force a fourth frame.
 
Libero Heather Thomas led UAB with 22 digs and moved into fifth place on the Blazers’ single-season digs chart with 470. She also owns the second-highest mark in school history with 586 last season. With eight regular season matches left, the junior is chasing Brianna Galvin’s school record of 592 digs, set in 2006.
 
UAB now heads back to the road for four straight matches starting with a trip next weekend to Houston, Texas. The Blazers will face Houston on Friday and Rice on Saturday in C-USA action.

-- CALL US UAB --

Xavier Volleyball Team Blanks Saint Louis, 3-0, on Senior Day

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Xavier Volleyball Team Blanks Saint Louis, 3-0, on Senior Day

CINCINNATI - The Xavier volleyball team shutout the visiting Saint Louis Billikens Sunday afternoon, 3-0 (25-22, 25-15, 29-27), on Senior Day at Cintas Center. Four senior team members, Chelsea Campbell, Claire Paszkiewicz, Shannon Voors and Shannon Wells, were recognized prior to the match.
 
Paszkiewicz reached the 3,000-assist mark this afternoon after posting her 10th double-double of the season (43A/15D) to go with six kills, a .455 hitting percentage, a service ace and an assisted block. Voors tallied a match-high 15 kills for the Musketeers while Campbell recorded 12 kills and three assisted blocks. Sophomore Stephanie Vorherr passed a match-high 18 digs to put her within 17 of the 1,000 dig mark.
 
Xavier (15-8, 8-3 A-10) committed only 14 errors out of 125 attempts for a .328 hitting percentage on the afternoon, compared to SLU's .212 average. The Musketeers outhit the Billikens by 17 kills (55-42) and passed 66 digs to SLU's 52.
 
Saint Louis (15-10, 8-3 A-10) was led by Carly Schumacher with 14 kills and Grace Bonoma with 14 digs. Hannah Kvitle posted a double-double for the Billikens with 35 assists and 13 digs.
 
The Musketeers return to action next weekend with a trip to Charlotte on Friday, Nov. 5. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

James Madison University Volleyball Team Sweeps Towson 3-0 In CAA Volleyball

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James Madison University Volleyball Team Sweeps Towson 3-0 In CAA Volleyball

TOWSON, Md., Oct. 31, 2010 – James Madison out-hit Towson .295 to .117 and sophomore Danielle Erb (Tampa, Fla./Plant) collected a match-high 14 kills to lead JMU to a 3-0 win over the Tigers at the Towson Center Arena on Sunday.
 
JMU won by set scores of 25-18, 25-17 and 25-19 for its fourth win in the last five games.  The Dukes improved to 19-6 overall and 7-3 in the Colonial Athletic Association.  The 19 wins were the most by Madison since finishing 19-9 in 2006.  Towson dropped to 13-14 and 1-9 in league play.
 
Erb was the only player to reach double figures in kills, finishing with 14 kills on .333 hitting and eight digs.  Senior Lindsay Callahan (Virginia Beach, Va./Landstown) recorded seven kills to move into a tie with Allyson Halls (2004-07) for third on JMU’s all-time list with 1,305.  She is just the third player in school history to reach 1,300 kills and 900 digs in their career.
 
Senior Lauren Fanelli (Moon Township, Pa./Moon Area) had 18 assists, three service aces and eight digs while freshman Katie Daorai (Tampa, Fla./Plant) lead all players with 12 digs.  Redshirt sophomore Natalie Abel (Washington, Pa./Trinity) was second on the team with nine kills on .259 hitting.
 
Katy Buck paced the Tigers with nine kills and 10 digs while Amanda Halls chipped in with seven kills and five digs.  Setter Evan Schulz led all players with 25 assists and Shelynne Hoyt had a match-high three blocks.
 
Towson held a four to two advantage in blocks.  The Dukes edged the Tigers in digs (39-36), aces (6-5) assists (37-26) and kills (41-31).
 
Madison continues its four-game road trip next Friday in Atlanta, Ga. as it takes on Georgia State at 7 p.m.
 
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UCLA Women's Volleyball: No Tricks, All Treats for Bruins in Sweep of Washington State

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UCLA Women's Volleyball: No Tricks, All Treats for Bruins in Sweep of Washington State

Oct. 31, 2010
 
LOS ANGELES - Sophomore Rachael Kidder had a match-high 14 kills, while freshman Kelly Reeves added 10 digs, as the 11th-ranked Bruins won their 16th-consecutive contest against Washington State in a sweep on Sunday at Pauley Pavilion. Set scores were 25-10, 25-12, 25-14.
 
The Bruins win their fourth in a row overall and are 17-5 on the season and 7-4 in Pac-10 play, while the Cougars fall to 6-15 and 0-11 in league.
 
Kidder hit .370 for the match with only four errors in 27 attacks. Junior Lauren Van Orden posted 36 assists, senior Dicey McGraw added eight kills and junior Lainey Gera recorded nine digs.
 
The score was close early on with five ties and four lead changes, but even at five, the Bruins netted eight in a row to blow things open. The run started with a kill from junior Katie Camp, a WSU attack error and a McGraw kill. After back-to-back kills from freshman Mariana Aquino made it 10-5, Gera served consecutive aces to put the Bruins up 12-5. Another kill from McGraw concluded the run to give UCLA a 13-5 advantage. With the score 14-7, the Bruins extended their lead to double figures for the first time after a 3-0 run on kills by McGraw and Aquino and a WSU attack error made it 17-7.
 
The Cougars sided out the next point, but the Bruins scored four straight on a kill by Kidder, a bad WSU set and consecutive kills from Reeves to make it 21-8. Washington State posted the next two to make it 21-10, but another 4-0 run on a Cougar service error, a combo block by Camp and Kidder and back-to-back kills from Kidder gave the Bruins a 25-10 victory in the opener. Kidder had a team-best five kills in the first, McGraw added four and Aquino and Reeves had three apiece. The Bruins out-hit the Cougars .467 to .000.
 
The Bruins led from start to finish in the second set, scoring the first three points on a kill by Aquino, a Washington State attack error and a Reeves kill. The Cougars sided out the next point, but a WSU service error and another kill by Reeves made it 5-1. Washington State cut its deficit to a pair at 7-5, but a 3-0 run on two Cougar errors and a Kidder kill made it 10-5.
 
UCLA’s lead stayed between three and five until the home squad posted a 9-0 run to take a commanding 23-10 advantage. The run began with consecutive kills by Kidder, one from Camp and another by Kidder to make it 18-10. After a WSU attack error, sophomore Mari Hole produced a kill and a combo block from Van Orden and junior Sara Sage brought the lead up to 11 at 21-10. The run concluded with a Cougar error and another kill by Hole. The Cougars scored the next two, but a WSU service error and a Hole kill gave the Bruins a 25-12 win. Kidder had six kills in the second, while Hole added three, as the Bruins out-hit the Cougars .323 to -.031.
 
The Bruins never trailed in the third set to finish off the sweep. The set was tied at 2 and 6-all, but a 3-0 run on back-to-back kills by McGraw and a McGraw/Sage combo block put UCLA ahead 9-6. The Cougars sided out the next point, but another 3-0 run on a McGraw kill, a bad set by Washington State and an ace from McGraw made it 12-7.
 
UCLA’s advantage never dipped below four for the rest of the set. At 15-11, kills by Hole and Aquino and a Cougar attack error made it 18-11. Washington State sided out the next point, but then committed back-to-back errors to go down 20-12. Following two more points by the Cougars to make it 20-14, the Bruins netted the last five of the match on three WSU errors, a block by freshman Meg Norton and an ace by Van Orden to give UCLA a 25-14 victory. McGraw posted four kills in the third, while Kidder added three. The Bruins out-hit the Cougars .304 to .038.
 
The Bruins are back on the road next weekend in the Bay Area, facing California on Friday and Stanford on Saturday. Both matches start at 7 p.m. and will feature Gametracker at UCLABruins.com. The contests will also be broadcast on a tape-delay basis by Fox Sports Net.
 
--- UCLABRUINS.COM ---

 

TCU Volleyball Team Comes Up Short In 3-2 Loss At UNLV

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TCU Volleyball Team Comes Up Short In 3-2 Loss At UNLV
Hudson tallies second triple-double of the season

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The TCU Horned Frogs saw a 2-1 match lead disappear as UNLV battled back for the 3-2 (20-25, 25-22, 25-14, 20-25, 11-15) match victory Sunday afternoon. Christy Hudson posted her second triple-double of the season with 14 kills, 11 assists and 18 digs. She is the only Horned Frog to tally two triple-doubles in one season.

Kristen Hester led the Frogs’ offensive attack with 16 kills on 25 swings. She pitched in with a service ace, five digs and five blocks. Jordan Raines collected 12 kills and tallied 14 digs for a double-double. Meghan Horio posted a double-double with 40 assists and 10 digs. Yvonne Igodan contributed seven kills and a career-high seven blocks. Along with her triple-double, Hudson also pitched in with five blocks. Sunstrum totaled nine kills, two digs and two blocks.

The Frogs and the Rebels put up a fierce battle in the first set, but it was UNLV that escaped with the 25-20 set one victory. TCU led through the early portion of the set as Kristen Hester was dominating the net. She poured in six kills and served up an ace to help the Frogs build a 14-12 lead.

UNLV responded with a 6-0 run that put the Frogs in an 18-14 hole. Hudson and Raines tried to erase the deficit with kills, but the Rebels continued to fire on all cylinders to take the early match lead.

Maddy Riggio got the Frogs off to a good start in the second set with an ace and the Frogs used the momentum to even the match at a game apiece with a 25-22 victory. Hudson, Kristen Hester and Raines were instrumental in the Frogs building a 15-11 lead that prompted the Rebels to burn both of their timeouts. UNLV had managed to tie the set at 10, but Sunstrum started a 3-0 rally that put the Frogs on top to stay.

Following its second timeout of the set, UNLV went on a mini 4-2 run that prompted a Horned Frog timeout. Kristen Hester came up with the answer out of the break and the Frogs cruised. Sloane pumped in a pair of kills to help push the lead to five, 21-16. After UNLV had pulled back within two, Igodan came through with a blast in the middle. She teamed with Raines on a block on the outside to give the Frogs set point and an attacking error by the Rebels locked up the victory for TCU.

Out of the intermission, the Horned Frogs hit the ground running, racing out to an 11-3 lead. Everyone contributed to the early success, including Connolly, who grabbed her first collegiate kill with a dig that landed on the line for a 3-0 TCU lead. Kristen Hester was a beast at the net as she paired with Sunstrum twice and Emily Kirby once on three blocks. She also drilled a pair of kills in the early run.

The Frogs kept rolling, picking up kill after kill to continue to build on their lead. Igodan drilled a pair of kills and Kristen Hester and Raines teamed on a block to make it a 16-8 contest. Sunstrum tallied two kills and Raines one in a 4-0 run that pushed the lead to 11, 21-10. Raines finished off the 25-14 set three victory with her ninth kill of the match to give the Frogs a 2-1 match lead.

UNLV battled hard in the fourth set to force a decisive fifth set. The Rebels dominated early as they built a 15-7 lead. After calling their second timeout of the set, the Frogs gained some momentum for the fifth as they put together a furious rally to get back in the set. A 4-0 run that was highlighted by a solo block by Kirby and a kill from Irene Hester pulled TCU within five. Two more kills from Irene Hester made it a four point contest, 23-19, but UNLV was able to close out the 25-20 set four victory.

The Rebels took control early in the fifth set, leading 5-2, prompting a TCU timeout. The Frogs never recovered and UNLV claimed the come-from-behind victory with a 15-11 win in the fifth set.

TCU falls to 13-11 overall and 4-6 in conference play. The Frogs will stay on the road as they head south for a non-conference match against Prairie View A&M. Match time on Tuesday night is set for 7 p.m.

UC Riverside Volleyball Team Drops 3-0 Decision To Arizona State

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UC Riverside Volleyball Team Drops 3-0 Decision To Arizona State

Riverside, CA - It was more tricks than treats for the Highlanders on Halloween, as the UC Riverside volleyball team was swept 3-0 in non-league play by Arizona State 25-16, 25-21, and 25-19 Sunday at the Student Recreation Center.

The Highlanders led early in the first set, 5-4, following a Kelly Simpson kill, but the Sun Devils scored 14 of the next 18 points to build an 18-9 advantage. UC Riverside ran off five straight points behind three more Simpson kills to close within four, but that was as close as the Highlanders would get the rest of the set.

Arizona State led 7-6 in the second set, but the Highlanders went on a 6-0 run to lead 12-7. The Sun Devils closed the gap to one, 14-13, but UCR pushed its lead back to three, 16-13, on two ASU errors.

The Sun Devils then scored four straight to tie the set at 17 before eventually taking a 20-19 lead on a ball handling error from Katie Meyers. Arizona State closed out the set by scoring six of the last eight points to take a 2-0 advantage in the match with a 25-21 victory.

The teams split the first 16 points of the third set with an Amanda Vialpando kill tying the match at eight apiece, but ASU put together an 9-2 run to go up 17-10. The Highlanders were unable to get any closer than six points the remainder of the set, and the Sun Devils completed the sweep with a 25-19 win.

Simpson and Vialpando each recorded 13 kills on the day, while Katie Meyers chipped in with 23 assists.

The Highlanders return to Big West Conference play with three matches next week, beginning with a 7:00 pm contest at UC Santa Barbara on Tuesday, Nov. 2.

Samford University Volleyball Team Sweeps Elon In Final Sunday Match

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Samford University Volleyball Team Sweeps Elon In Final Sunday Match
--- Bulldogs continue giant-slayer role with sweep of Phoenix ---
 
Oct. 31, 2010
 
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. ---- The Samford University volleyball team took down its second consecutive top-ranked SoCon opponent Sunday in a 3-0 sweep of Elon. After Samford’s win over UNC Greensboro on Saturday, Elon moved into first place in the North Division with a win over Chattanooga. However, Samford (13-14, 7-6 SoCon) came up with its third SoCon upset in the last week with a win over Elon (15-13, 6-5 SoCon) in the Pete Hanna Center Sunday.
 
Samford has now won five of its last six matches. If Samford continues its winning ways on the road next week, the Bulldogs could move into first place in the North Division with a tie and be headed for their third straight SoCon Tournament appearance.
 
“I think it’s one of those situations where we are coming into our own at the right time,” Samford head coach Derek Schroeder said. “Those are two very good volleyball teams that came in here this weekend. I can’t believe how well Elon passed the ball. And for a team to be in system as well as they were today and for us to defend as well as we did – I’m very surprised. That showed a lot of character, and it showed a lot of just sticking to our system and knowing that we will win in the end.”
 
The Bulldogs and the Phoenix battled it out in three close sets but it was Samford that would make the plays to come out on top this time. The three-set battle saw 19 tied scores and nine lead changes, and had the Bulldogs hitting over .300 as a team for their third straight match and their seventh of the season. Samford posted an impressive .433 hitting percentage in set one, only committing three attack errors as a team. The Bulldogs also knocked down 24 kills in set three, holding Elon to just 13 in the set.
 
Elizabeth Neisler posted her second consecutive 20-kill match and her third of the season. She tallied 20 kills and hit .308 while also adding a dig to her stat line. Lauren Hutchinson followed with 17 kills and hit .583 against the Phoenix. That marks the sixth time she has hit over .500 in a match this year. She also tallied two aces, matched a career high in digs with four and posted a career-high two solo blocks.
 
“Neisler and Lauren have been incredible all month long,” Schroeder said. “They have been huge for us offensively and defensively.”
 
Allie Bettinger posted her second double-double of the season with 10 kills and 11 digs. She hit .450 on the day, only committing one error and also had a block assist. Hillary Fountain had five kills and hit .267 while also grabbing nine digs, two aces and one assist. Taylor Palmer knocked down four kills in her second start at home and came up with a dig and a block assist as well.
 
Alexis Bauer led the back row with 14 digs while also adding an ace. Samantha Bland added eight digs and an assist while Lyndsey Holt also grabbed a dig.
 
Sarah Schermerhorn and Lauren Copenhagen led Elon with 10 kills each. Schermerhorn hit a team-high .625 with no errors on 16 attempts. Megan McMahon dished out 33 assists while Ali Deatsch had 11 digs followed by McMahon with seven.
 
Samford moves into the home stretch next weekend as it takes its final road trip of the season. The Bulldogs will face Western Carolina on Saturday and a tough Appalachian State team who is tied for first place in the North on Monday. The Bulldogs have clinched the North Division title the last two years against the Mountaineers – first in Boone, N.C., and last year at home. They have also played five sets the last two times the Bulldogs have visited Appalachian State. This road trip with be a huge test for the Bulldogs and Schroeder is set to prepare his team.
 
“We are not a great road team, but that is because of age,” Schroeder said. “So, we are going to talk about it this week and we are going to talk about maturity, and I’m going to tell them that I’m going to get tough on them this week because things are going to be tough on the road. If they can respond well to that Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and travel on Friday, we will be just fine.”
 
The match against Western Carolina on Saturday begins at 3 p.m. while Appalachian State and Samford will face off on Monday at 2 p.m.
 
Samford 3, Elon 0
 
Neisler opened up the first set of the day with a kill to start Samford off with a lead, but a service error by Garvey evened the score. Two more Samford errors and an ace by Caroline Lemke had Elon leading by a score of 4-1 quickly, but Samford answered back with three straight points on an Elon error, a kill by Bettinger and a block by Palmer and Bettinger to tie the score at four. The score was tied four more times before Samford took a three-point lead on back-to-back kills by Neisler, and Elon called its first timeout of the match.
 
The Phoenix quickly came back and took a one-point lead on four straight kills but Samford fought back to tie the score before going on a 6-2 run to move ahead by four points. A kill by Bettinger followed by an ace from Fountain and a kill by Hutchinson forced Elon to burn its second timeout. Although the Phoenix cut the Bulldog lead to three out of the break, Samford would go on to win set one, 25-19, on back-to-back kills by Neisler.
 
An Elon error out of the gate gave Samford the first point of the second set but Traci Stewart came back with a kill to get the Phoenix on the board. However, Samford put together a 7-3 run, sparked by a kill from Neisler and capped off by a kill from Hutchinson, and the Bulldogs had a four-point lead while Elon called a timeout. After the break, Elon fought back but Samford matched the Phoenix point for point and maintained a four-point lead. Schroeder wanted a timeout anyway to talk to his team.
 
With Samford leading 13-9, Elon fought back to cut the lead to two due to several Samford errors. The Bulldogs called another timeout and came back to match the Phoenix point for point again to maintain a two-point lead. Samford reached set point on a kill by Bettinger and Elon called its final timeout. The Phoenix came back with a kill to hold off the Bulldogs, but a kill from Hutchinson sealed the deal and the Bulldogs went on to win set two, 25-23.
 
Elon jumped out to a 2-0 lead in set three on back-to-back attack errors by Neisler but Samford quickly moved ahead by one due to a Phoenix service error and two kills by Bettinger. After three tied scores, Samford finally took a three-point lead on two kills by Neisler followed by a kill from Palmer. Elon called a timeout and fought to get within one point but Samford pulled ahead by three again with two kills from Hutchinson.
 
Elon called another timeout but the Bulldogs pushed forward and took a 22-17 lead on a kill by Palmer and two kills from Neisler. However, the Phoenix managed to cut the lead back to two, forcing Samford to take a timeout. A block out of the break from Copenhagen and Schermerhorn got Elon within one point but Samford fought back with kills from Neisler, Fountain and Hutchinson to win set three, 25-23, and complete the match sweep.
 
*** SAMFORD BULLDOGS ***