Alabama
Ole Miss
Volleyball Falls in Five to Ole Miss on Sunday
10/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Alabama built a 2-1 match lead over Ole Miss on Sunday, but the Rebels fought back to win the fourth and edge out the fifth to hand the Crimson Tide its first home loss of the season.
Alabama (16-5, 4-3 SEC) was held to a .231 team hitting percentage, opposed to Ole Miss' (18-3, 4-3 SEC) .311, despite holding the match advantage in kills, 69-66. Krystal Rivers led the Tide offense with 25 kills and a .346 clip, adding 14 digs for a double-double. Kat Hutson knocked in 21 kills, while Sierra Wilson set 62 assists and Bruna Evangelista stuffed three blocks. Ole Miss was led offensively by Nakeyta Clair with 17 kills and a .560 hitting percentage.
Tied at 3-3 in the opening set, Ole Miss started to pull away with an 8-3 run to lead 11-6. Alabama charged back with a 7-3 run to trail by one, 13-14, as Ole Miss took a timeout. With the Rebels up by three, 18-15, the visitors reached set point, 24-18, off a 6-3 run and eventually won, 25-19.
Ole Miss held onto a slim lead in the second set but Alabama came back to tie it 9-9 and take a 13-10 lead, forcing a Rebel timeout. Alabama would hold onto the slim lead, but the Rebels kept it close as the Tide reached set point, 24-22. Ole Miss scored a kill to draw within one but Rivers ended it with a kill of her own to win, 25-23, and even the match at 1-1.
Ole Miss jumped ahead to an early 5-1 lead in set three, forcing an early Alabama timeout. The Rebels stayed on top at the halfway point, leading 13-9, but the Tide would fight back to tie it at 18-18. A block by Rivers and Leah Lawrence brought up set point, 24-21, and two points later a kill by Rivers would seal the 25-22 victory to take a 2-1 match lead.
The teams were neck-and-neck early in set four, but tied at 9-9 Ole Miss started to pull away with an 8-4 run to lead, 17-13. Alabama would claw back to draw within one, trailing 22-21, but Ole Miss would power ahead to win, 25-22, and force a fifth set.
The teams traded points back and forth to open the fifth, but it was Alabama that held the 8-5 lead at the mid-set switch. The Rebels would score three unanswered points to tie it at 8-8. The Rebels would retain the lead and reach match point, 14-11. Alabama threated with back-to-back points to draw within one, 14-13, but a kill by Clair ended it as the Rebels won the fifth, 15-13, to win the match, 3-2.
Next up, Alabama will make a midweek trip to the plains, facing the Auburn Tigers (9-11) on Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 8 p.m. CT. The match will be aired live on ESPNU.
