Volleyball Wraps up Road Weekend at Tennessee Sunday
10/4/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
ALABAMA NOTES | TENNESSEE NOTES
THE MATCHUP
Alabama (14-3, 2-1 SEC) wraps up its road weekend with a match against Tennessee (7-10, 0-3 SEC) on Sunday, Oct. 5 at 12:30 p.m. CT.
THE TIDE ON THE AIR
Video - SEC Network + on WatchESPN.com or the WatchESPN app
Audio - Audio Stream on Rolltide.com
SCOUTING ALABAMA
Alabama (14-3, 2-1 SEC) - Alabama recently saw its nine-match winning streak stopped at the hands of Kentucky, as the Wildcats handed the Tide its first conference loss of the season. A key component during the first half of the season has been Krystal Rivers, the winner of back-to-back SEC Offensive Player of the Week awards. The redshirt sophomore leads the SEC and ranks eighth nationally in both kills (279) and aces (29). Junior setter Sierra Wilson has guided the potent offense, leading the SEC and ranking fourth nationally with 734 assists, an average of 11.47 per set. Freshman Kat Hutson and sophomore Brittany Thomas are also in triple-digit kills with 197 and 162, respectively, while Thomas is third on the team in digs (147), trailing only freshman Natalie Murison (174) and junior Kryssi Daniels (148). Up front, Leah Lawrence and Bruna Evangelista lead the team with 66 and 56 blocks, respectively, while Evangelista is hitting a team-leading .373 on offense.
LAST TIME OUT: VOLLEYBALL FALLS IN FOUR TO 13TH-RANKED KENTUCKY
After falling down 2-0 in the match, Alabama battled back to win the third set and nearly took a fourth, but Kentucky rallied late in the fourth to defeat the Crimson Tide, 3-1. The loss is Alabama's (14-3, 2-1 SEC) first in SEC play and snaps a nine-match win streak, while 13th-ranked Kentucky (13-2, 3-0 SEC) remains undefeated against conference opponents. Kat Hutson led the Tide offensively with 18 kills and a .400 hitting percentage and Krystal Rivers notched her third-straight double-double with 16 kills and 11 digs. The Wildcats were led by Shelby Workman with 19 kills, a .459 clip and 10 digs while Lauren O'Conner and Anni Thomasson were also in double-digit kills with 15 and 10, respectively.
Sierra Wilson MOVING UP THE CAREER LISTS
Earlier this season, junior setter Sierra Wilson became the fifth player in Alabama history to surpass 3,000 career assists and she is closing in on yet another career milestone. She is just 29 assists away from moving into fourth all-time at Alabama, passing Erin Tenbrunsel (1992-95) at 3,506. The next step up the ladder for Wilson would be Allison Lange (1997-2000) in third place with 4,215 career assists.
RIVERS EARNS SECOND-STRAIGHT SEC WEEKLY HONOR
Redshirt sophomore Krystal Rivers continues to impress for Alabama as she has earned her second-straight SEC Offensive Player of the Week award, announced by the conference office Monday. Rivers led the offense in kills for the second-straight week, posting 22 last Wednesday against Georgia and 26 on Sunday against LSU. The 26 kills against the Tigers are her highest in a four-set match so far this season. She also played a key role on defense, posting double-digit digs in each match to earn her fourth and fifth double-doubles of the season. Her 12 digs in the weekend finale against LSU are a new career-high. Combined over the week's two matches, she had a .400 hitting percentage, 48 kills, 22 digs and seven blocks. So far this season, Rivers leads the SEC in kills (263), aces (29) and points (317.0) and is second in kills per set (4.38) and aces per set (0.48).
VOLLEYBALL SETS NEW ATTENDANCE RECORD VS. LSU
Foster Auditorium was packed with 1,749 fans for an exciting 3-1 win over LSU on Sunday, Sept. 28, which marks a new volleyball attendance record for the Crimson Tide. This is already the second time under Head Coach Ed Allen that Alabama has broken the attendance record. Prior to Sunday, the record was 1,670 which was set against LSU on Sept. 14, 2012. That easily beat the previous best record of 1,231, set against Auburn on Nov. 9, 2010. Despite setting the record three times since 2010, the previous record of 1,227 stood for nearly as long, set originally on Nov. 12, 2003 against Auburn. Since 2011, Alabama has had eight matches with larger crowds than the 2003 record mark.
ALABAMA MAKES SCHOOL HISTORY IN LATEST AVCA COACHES POLL
A 14-2 start to the season and a perfect 2-0 record in SEC play for Alabama has grabbed the attention of the nation's coaches, as the Crimson Tide are receiving votes in the latest AVCA Coaches Poll for the first time in school history. Alabama is receiving 11 votes in the latest poll, just five spots outside the Top 25. Alabama is one of four SEC teams to appear in the poll, trailing only No. 9 Florida (8-3, 2-0 SEC), No. 13 Kentucky (12-2, 2-0 SEC) and No. 21 Texas A&M (9-3, 1-0 SEC). As a team, Alabama is second in the SEC and 14th nationally with a .875 winning percentage. The Tide's play at the service line is also among the nation's best, as Alabama leads the SEC and ranks seventh nationally in service aces (108) and 10th in aces per set (1.80). Sierra Wilson leads the SEC and ranks fourth nationally with 685 assists and is 13th nationally at 11.42 assists per set. Krystal Rivers, who has won back-to-back SEC Offensive Player of the Week awards, is eighth nationally in kills (263) and aces (29).
NEXT TIME OUT: ALABAMA AT TEXAS A&M
On Friday, Oct. 10, Alabama will conclude its four-game road stint with a trip to No. 21 Texas A&M (10-3, 2-0 SEC). The match will begin at 7 p.m. CT and will be streamed online on SEC Network+.
