Alabama
South Carolina
Volleyball Wins Five-Setter at South Carolina
9/25/2009 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 25, 2009
COLUMBIA, S.C. - Behind another balanced offensive effort, the volleyball team improved to 3-0 against Southeastern Conference opponents as it won a five-set thriller (25-23, 14-25, 18-25, 26-24, 15-9) at South Carolina on Friday. With the win, the Crimson Tide improves to 5-8 overall, while the Gamecocks dip to 9-3 on the season and 1-2 versus league foes.
"The difference in the match today was us staying composed in the fourth set," said head coach Judy Green. "We really started siding out better which gave us the confidence to put together small scoring runs. When I looked in our team's eyes before the fifth set, I knew we were going to be successful. They had a completely different look in their eyes than in our other five-setters this season."
Leading a trio of Alabama players in double-figure kills was junior Alyssa Meuth, who tied her career best of 18 in the match. Sophomore Ashley Frazier also tied her career high with 17 kills, and freshman Kayla Fitterer added another 13 kills for the Tide. Junior Kayla Schmidt was one assist shy of her best setting effort with 32 assists in addition to adding 18 digs. Freshman Kelsey Anderson scooped up the remaining bulk of the attacks with 14 digs.
For the match, Alabama hit .231 and improved its sideout percentage to 69 in the fifth set. The Tide's 63 kills were a season-high in matches decided in five as was its assist total of 61.
The first came down to the wire as the set remained close throughout with 13 ties and seven lead changes. South Carolina got on the board first, but Alabama jumped in front two series later behind a Gamecock attack error. After going back-and-forth for the majority of the frame, the Tide grabbed hold of the lead at 20-19 behind another South Carolina attack error and held on for the win. A pair of kills, one from Schmidt and another from Fitterer, cemented the victory 25-23.
The Gamecocks cruised to a quick 3-0 lead in the second thanks to two kills and a block. Frazier got Alabama on the board next with her fourth kill of the match off a set from Schmidt. South Carolina continued to stay in front for the duration of the set not allowing the Tide to get any closer than two points from the lead. The Gamecocks closed out the second with a 10-3 run for the 25-14 win and evened the match at one set a piece.
South Carolina carried its momentum into the third following the intermission going ahead by as many as four early in the set. Alabama cut its deficit to two at 9-7 thanks to three consecutive points forcing the Gamecocks to call timeout. South Carolina answered after the break in play with a 3-0 run of its own for the 12-7 advantage. The Gamecocks would take their heftiest lead of the set at 19-11, and just when it looked like the home team was going to pull away for good, the Tide put together a 7-3 run to cut the lead to four. After a kill from junior Hannah Lawing, South Carolina benefitted from a pair of Alabama errors to take the third 25-18.
The fourth frame was intense from the get-go as the Tide needed a win to force a fifth set and the Gamecocks needed the victory to close out the match. Alabama found itself in front early on thanks to a pair of Frazier kills, but South Carolina would soon claw its way on top 4-3 with a service ace from senior Sarah Cline. The Gamecocks remained in front for most of the set until the Tide rattled off a 5-1 run putting the Crimson and White ahead 19-18. Alabama went on to score three consecutive points to take its largest lead of the set at 22-18. South Carolina would fight off a trio of set points and eventually tie the frame at 24-24, but it was the Tide that would emerge victorious with the 26-24 win.
Alabama came out with a mission in the fifth cruising to a 5-1 lead that forced the Gamecocks to burn a timeout. Throughout that run were a pair of blocks, both of which Fitterer had a hand in. The Tide continued to pace the set until South Carolina delivered a 3-0 run to pull within one point of the lead at 8-7. Alabama answered the threat formulating a 5-1 scoring drive that put the set at 13-8. Following a Lawing kill, the Tide delivered a pair of blows, including a kill from junior Calli Johnson and service ace from Frazier, to win its first five-setter of the season.
"We made big plays at the right time tonight," added Green. "I think two of the biggest in the match were Kayla Fitterer's blocks in the fifth set. Those gave us a huge boost in confidence. A win on the road like this shows we're really starting to grow together."
Alabama continues its weekend road trip as it travels to Gainesville to take on the fifth-ranked Gators Sunday. Match time is slated for 12:30 p.m. (CST).
