Tide Volleyball Suffers Stunning Loss at Georgia, 3-0
10/1/2004 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
 |
|
ATHENS, Ga. - A feisty Georgia Bulldog volleyball squad handed Alabama its first loss in Southeastern Conference play on Friday night, 3-0 (30-24, 30-16, 36-34) at the Ramsey Center in front of a crowd of 1,025.
The Tide, now 12-2 overall and 2-1 in the SEC, failed to record a game victory in a match for the first time all season. The loss also snapped a four-match win streak for Alabama. The win was Georgia's first in league play improving the Bulldogs season mark to 8-4 overall and 1-2 in the SEC.
From the start, Georgia kept Alabama off-balance on both sides of the net. UGA's defense forced the Tide into one of its poorest hitting performances (.103) of the year while recording one of the top offensive showings against Bama this season (.306). The Bulldogs held a 16-4 advantage in blocking and also won the dig battle 44-39.
"I am extremely disappointed in our effort tonight," said UA head coach Judy Green. "But, I promise we will look at the tape of this match and we learn our lessons and we will make improvements and adjustments."
A 7-0 run by Georgia midway through the opening frame gave the Bulldogs all of the cushion they would need as they grabbed the early match advantage with a 30-24 victory. UGA recorded three of their five blocks in game one during the spurt. Alabama closed the deficit to four points late in the frame but could get no closer.
Alabama continued its struggles in game two as a determined Georgia gained a double-digit lead. UGA scored 16 of the game's final 22 points including an 8-0 run to cruise to a 30-16 win. The Bulldog defense was again the key to their success tallying eight blocks en route to forcing UA into a .030 hitting performance.
The two squads battled point-for-point to start game three as the Crimson Tide displayed a new-found intensity. Bama took a 14-11 advantage but Georgia rallied to knot the score at 14. From there the side-out contest continued with neither team holding more than a one point edge until UA earned a 27-25 edge.
The frame advanced to sudden death play with both teams having opportunities to close it out. UGA finally ended it scoring a pair of points for the 36-34 win.
Seniors Erin Heffner and Julie Farley led the Tide offense with 12 kills each. Heffner also paced the UA defense finishing with 11 digs. Junior libero Jessica Yearout also posted 11 digs.
In a losing cause, Heffner was able to reach more milestones in her All-American season. She became the seventh UA player to record 1,000 career digs in the second game and also moved into fourth on the SEC's all-time career kill list with 1,793. Heffner also extended her current double-figure kill streak to 28 consecutive matches.
For Georgia, Julia Petruschke finished with 21 kills with All-SEC standout Alexandra Oquendo chipping in 11 kills and nine blocks.
Alabama concludes its SEC weekend road swing on Sunday in Gainesville, Fla., with a match against No. 5 Florida at 1 p.m. (ET).
