Volleyball Opens SEC Action with Tennessee
BATON ROUGE – The LSU volleyball team opens Alumnae Weekend by heading into Southeastern Conference action Friday against Tennessee. First serve is slated for 7 p.m. at the Maravich Center.
“Tennessee is a very difficult opponent to start SEC play with,” head coach Fran Flory said. “They’re a veteran team on a roll right now. We’re going to have to do an excellent job of controlling the first contact on both sides whether it’s serving or passing to be successful.”
The Tigers (6-3, 0-0 SEC) are receiving 30 votes in the latest edition of the AVCA Top 25 and have tallied votes during the first four polls after turning in a trio of 2-1 showings at the Shamrock Invitational , Tiger Classic and Allstate Sugar Bowl.
LSU’s offense is fueled by Brittnee Cooper and Marina Skender, who have combined for 49.1 percent of the team’s kills. Cooper has built on her 2008 AVCA All-America Honorable Mention form and claimed All-Tournament Team honors in all three of LSU’s appearances.
A 2009 All-SEC Preseason Team honoree, Cooper has powered home 127 kills at a 3.63 per set clip on an impressive .393 hitting percentage. She has turned in over a .400 clip in six of her last seven matches highlighted by a pair of 20-kill performances against Long Beach State and No. 6 Nebraska.
Skender is well on her way to returning to her 2007 form where she ripped double-digit kills 20 times and added 13 double-doubles. She missed all of the 2008 season due to injury and has already knocked double-digit kills in seven of nine matches this season.
Skender has come away with All-Tournament Team accolades in each of the last two weekends. She also has compiled three double-doubles and became the fifth player in program history to join the historic 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs club.
“Brittnee and Marina did a tremendous job preparing for the season and they’re reaping the benefits of all their hard work,” Flory said. “It’s no secret that they’re our leaders. We have to establish a little more balanced in SEC play if we’re going to be the team that we’re capable of being.”
Sam Dabbs strung together consecutive double-doubles against Long Beach State and New Orleans to conclude the Allstate Sugar Bowl Classic last weekend. She ranks third in the SEC and has passed out 10.09 assists per set, improving on her average from 9.22 in 2008.
Brittney Johnson also has seen time at the setter position and has posted 8.86 assists per set in her 14 frames as the primary setting option. The Baton Rouge native also takes swings from the outside and has already registered 26 blocks in nine matches after tallying 39 blocks during all of last season.
Lauren DeGirolamo has popped five or more kills on better than a .500 hitting percentage in three of her last four matches sparked by a 13-kill, nine-dig effort against Long Beach State last weekend. After being eased back into the lineup to start the season,DeGirolamo worked extremely hard on her back row defense during rehab and has corralled seven or more digs in seven of nine matches.
Lauren Waclawczyk and Sam Delahoussaye anchor the back row for the Tigers and have combined for seven double-digit dig performances. Waclawczyk secured a career-best 17 digs against No. 6 Nebraska, while Delahoussaye reached the same feat at Notre Dame.
Friday’s match kicks off LSU’s involvement in the 2009 SEC Together We CAN Food Drive. The Tiger softball team will be on-hand to collect can donations prior to the match. There will be five barrels inside the Maravich Center between the Lower Southeast and Southwest entrances. All proceeds benefit the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank.
Friday’s match also serves as Student Point Night and the annual Gold Diggers Match. There will be 300 T-Shirts handed out throughout the match.
Tickets are now on-sale at www.LSUSports.net, the official Web site of LSU Athletics. Tickets also can be purchased at the ticket office on the first floor of the Athletics Administration Building or by calling (225) 578-2184. LSU students, faculty and staff are admitted free with a valid LSU ID.
LSU volleyball also is offering the Friends and Family Pass where fans receive four tickets, four hot dogs and four drinks for only $20. Live stats and video for the Tennessee match is available on LSUsports.net in the Geaux Zone.
