Alabama Volleyball Falls in Four Games to Arkansas
10/14/2002 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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TUSCALOOSA - The University of Alabama battled a talented Arkansas squad but came up a little bit short as the Lady Razorbacks earned the hard-fought 3-1 (30-25, 30-20, 20-30, 30-23) win over the Tide in the CAVE on Sunday afternoon.
With the loss, Alabama slipped to 13-7 overall and 4-2 in the Southeastern Conference. Arkansas moved to 14-4 overall and 5-1 in the SEC and now holds a slight edge in the SEC Western Division standings.
"Arkansas is a very good team," said UA head coach Judy Green. "The match today came down to ball control and they were just a little better and more consistent than we were. Every game was won by the team that passed the ball the best. It is a disappointing loss but we will definitely learn and build from this match."
Arkansas jumped out to the early advantage in game one taking a 10-5 lead. The Tide kept things close and eventually tied the score at 17. The squads swapped several points before Arkansas strung three points together to take a lead they would not relinquish. The Lady Razorbacks won the first game by a 30-25 count. Arkansas tallied an impressive .406 hitting percentage in the opening stanza.
The Tide fell behind quickly in game two as Arkansas continued their solid offensive play. A 7-0 run midway through the frame pushed the Lady 'Backs in front 17-8 and put the game out of reach moments later with another seven-point spurt (27-13). Alabama refused to quit scoring six of the next seven points but it was too little too late as Arkansas held on for the 30-20 victory.
As has become their trademark, Alabama regrouped in game three turning the tide on the Lady 'Backs and rushing out to a 7-3 lead. Arkansas trimmed the UA margin but Bama responded and slowly extended their lead. The Crimson Tide opened up a double-digit margin 24-14 on one of Erin Heffner's eight kills in the game. Alabama proved too strong cruising to the 30-20 win. The Tide has now earned a game three victory in 9 of their last 10 matches. Bama finally found an offensive flow hitting at a match-high .390 clip.
UA maintained the momentum at the start of game four as the Tide opened up a 6-3 advantage. Following an Arkansas timeout, the Lady 'Backs turned things up defensively at the net posting four blocks in an 11-2 run that put them in front for good (16-9). Arkansas used two more blocks of their seven blocks in the game to extend their lead to near double digits. Kenna Milner led the Tide to four straight points from the service line including an ace to cut the UA deficit to 25-20 but Arkansas was able to hold on and earn the match victory with the 30-23 win.
Heffner led a quartet of Tide players in double-figures with 19 kills followed by Jennifer Bibber with 14. Erin Price finished and Kory Tull, who recorded a career high, both tallied 12 kills. Milner handed out 52 assists in a balanced Bama attack that finished the match with a .200 hitting percentage. Tull led the UA backline posting 13 digs for her first career double-double. Bibber (12) and Heffner (11) also reached double digit digs in the contest.
Arkansas had three players with double-figure kills including a team-best 14 by Jennifer Haaser. Sara Kincaid, the SEC's top blocker, finished with 10 blocks to lead the Lady 'Backs to a 17-8 advantage in blocks.
Alabama concludes its current home stand next weekend when the Tide welcomes SEC East rivals South Carolina (Friday) and Kentucky (Sunday).
Alabama (13-7, 4-2 SEC) 25 20 30 23
Arkansas (14-4, 5-1 SEC) 30 30 20 30
