Alabama Drops Heartbreaker at Georgia Tech in Volleyball
9/20/2002 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
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ATLANTA - For the first time all season the Alabama volleyball team played a five-game match but in the end a talented Georgia Tech squad proved too strong as Bama lost a disappointing 3-2 (30-23, 23-30, 30-28, 22-30, 15-12) decision in front of a boisterous 1,208 fans at O'Keefe Gym on Friday night.
The loss drops the Tide to 8-5 on the year while Georgia Tech improves to 12-2.
"We played our most consistent, sustained match of the year," said UA head coach Judy Green. "But, Georgia Tech made plays late in the fifth game when they needed to. We are still learning how to make those plays. I was very encouraged with our effort. Hopefully, we can continue to build and learn from our experiences."
A fired up Crimson Tide jumped on Georgia Tech quickly taking an 8-2 lead with the help of a 5-0 run sparked by a pair of aces from Erin Price. Tech trimmed the Tide advantage to 15-12 but another pair of aces by Price pushed the Tide back up by six. UA maintained their margin for the remainder of the game earning the early lead with a 30-23 victory. Erin Heffner paced the Tide attack with eight kills in the frame.
Georgia Tech turned the table on the Tide to start game two claiming a 12-4 advantage on the strength of an 8-1 run. The Bama offense struggled to string points together as the Yellow Jackets extended their lead to double figures (23-13) with a five point run that included a pair of Tide hitting miscues. UA put together a late five point spurt of its own but it proved too little too late as Tech held on for the 30-23 win to even the match. Lynette Moster, the reigning National Player of the Week, was the driving force for GT tallying seven kills in the game.
The Jackets drew first blood in the third frame using a 6-1 run to take the early 7-3 lead. Alabama clawed its way back to within one (8-7) but three quick points by Tech stretched their lead again. Bama kept the contest close and eventually took their first lead 19-18 on an ace by Julie Farley. From that point, the two squads engaged in a fierce sideout battle for several possessions until a pair of Tech service errors put the Tide in front for good as Price finished the match with a kill for the 30-28 decision.
In game four, Alabama again fell behind early (6-2) and battled back to narrow the gap. Tech charged back in front with an 8-1 run that featured a trio of tandem blocks and three kills by Moster giving them a 16-8 lead. Bama would fight and scrap but would get no closer than five as the Jackets captured the win by a 30-22 count. Moster again was the force pounding out eight kills for the game.
The final game featured a point-trading battle befitting the high level of competition in the match. Heffner sparked a 6-2 run by the Tide with three kills and a solo block but Tech refused to quit rallying to tie the score at 11. Bama committed three uncharacteristic hitting errors to close the match as Georgia Tech won the final game 15-12.
Heffner finished the contest with 21 kills followed by Bibber with 13. Price and Tull both posted nine kills in a solid offensive performance. Freshman Kelley Potter led the Tide defense with a season-high 10 digs while Price served up a match high six aces in the loss.
Moster ended the match with 29 kills on 52 attempts hitting at an impressive .442 percentage. Lauren Sauer, a native of Huntsville, Ala., tallied 15 kills against her home state squad. Kele Eveland led the Tech defense with 14 digs followed by 11 from Moster. The Yellow Jackets won the war at the net out-blocking UA, 13-5.
In the Crimson Tide's first match of the day, UA swept Cornell 3-0 (34-32, 30-28, 30-20) behind 19 kills by Jennifer Bibber and 11 from Erin Price.
Alabama concludes play at the Georgia Tech Invitational with a match against Florida International at 3 p.m. (ET) on Saturday.
Alabama (8-5) 30 23 30 22
Georgia Tech (12-2) 23 30 28 30
