Alabama
10-4
Auburn
6-8
Big Scoring Runs Lead Volleyball to Four-Set Road Win Over Auburn Wednesday
10/2/2019 10:09:00 PM | Volleyball
AUBURN, Ala. – Big scoring runs helped Alabama volleyball earn a key 3-1 road win over in-state rival Auburn Wednesday night.
Alabama (10-4, 2-1 SEC) won the opening set over Auburn (6-8, 0-3 SEC), 25-23, and used a pair of huge comebacks in the second to take a 2-0 match lead, with a 12-3 run giving the Crimson Tide a 17-16 lead and six-straight points to close out the set at 25-23. The Tigers avoided the sweep with a 25-18 win in the third, but another big scoring run in the fourth helped give Alabama back the lead for good, winning 25-20 to complete the four-set win.
Freshman Alyiah Wells and senior Ginger Perinar both tallied double-digit kills with 14 and 12, respectively. Senior Hayley McSparin hit .462 with eight kills along with four blocks. Freshman Emily Janek finished with a season-best 45 assists while junior Kaylee Thomas dug a career-best 24 balls.
???? ???????????? ???????????? ??????????' ???? ?? ?????????? ?????????? ????????????#BeatAuburn #RollTide pic.twitter.com/ILlTY6BEgB
— Alabama Volleyball (@AlabamaVBall) October 3, 2019
From Head Coach Lindsey Devine
"I liked how we competed. We just had to keep working together as a team. I thought that our backcourt defense kept us in the match. Between that and our pass game, those were difference-makers in long rallies and really the difference-makers for the entire match. Hayley McSparin was offensively really strong and Emily Janek continues to find ways to connect with her attackers. To come into somebody else's gym, especially an in-state rival, and win is very difficult. We stayed the course overall. We had moments where we slipped but I liked the leadership of Kaylee Thomas tonight. She got us back on track and helped us put together a great win tonight."
Stat Leaders
- Kills – Alyiah Wells (14)
- Assists – Emily Janek (45)
- Aces – Emily Janek, Kaylee Thomas (2)
- Digs – Kaylee Thomas (24)
- Blocks – Emily Janek (6)
Set-by-Set
- Set One (Alabama 25, Auburn 23): Alabama scored three unanswered points to open the set and stayed in front until a 4-0 run gave Auburn a 7-6 lead. After four tie scores, a Tiger attack error gave the Tide an 11-10 lead before a 5-1 run pushed Auburn back ahead, 15-12, at the media timeout. Alabama scored three straight after the break to tie it back up at 15-15 and then eventually took an 18-16 lead before Auburn called a timeout. A kill from Perinar after an overpass made it 20-17 as the Tigers spent their final timeout. Alabama moved ahead by four at 22-18 until back-to-back points from Auburn cut the lead in half to force a late Tide timeout. Alabama would win the set six points later, 25-23.
- Set Two (Alabama 25, Auburn 23): Auburn held the early momentum in the second, pulling ahead 9-3 before Alabama took a timeout. The Tigers continued to expand their lead, with a 4-0 run pushing it to 13-5 halfway through the frame. The Tide cut into the deficit with a 7-2 run, pulling within three before Auburn had to take a timeout with its lead trimmed to 15-12. The Tigers scored on the next rally after the break before the Tide rattled off five in a row to take the lead, 17-16. Following another Auburn timeout, the Tigers answered with a 4-0 run to lead 20-17. The Tide took a timeout three points later trailing 22-18. Later trailing 23-19, Alabama made another huge comeback, scoring six straight points to earn another two-point win and take a 2-0 match lead.
- Set Three (Auburn 25, Alabama 18): Alabama was in an early hole to start the third set, trailing 9-1 before taking its first timeout. Still leading by eight later at 13-5, a service ace pushed the Tigers lead to nine before the Tide responded with four straight to trim it to 14-9 as Auburn took a timeout. Alabama would draw as close as three points, trailing 17-14 before three-straight from the Tigers gave the home team some cushion. After an Tide timeout trailing 20-14, Auburn would reach set point with the same margin before a block ended it at 25-18.
- Set Four (Alabama 25, Auburn 20): Auburn again jumped ahead to an early lead, up 6-2 but Alabama quickly trimmed the deficit to one, with a kill from Perinar making it an 8-7 game. The Tigers held on to its slim lead until four in a row from the Tide pushed them ahead 15-14 at the media timeout. Alabama continued to expand its lead, up 19-15 as Auburn spent a timeout. The Tide led 23-18 at the Tigers' second timeout and each team scored two points down the stretch as Alabama won, 25-20.
Keys to the Match
- A pair of huge runs helped Alabama win the second set. Trailing 13-5, the Tide went on a 12-3 run to lead 17-16. Later trailing 23-19, Alabama scored six in a row to close out the set and win, 25-23.
- Alabama looked to make a similar comeback in the third, but service errors hurt the effort with the Tide committing four after just two combined over the first two frames.
- The big scoring runs continued into the fourth. Trailing 14-11, Alabama scored five unanswered to lead 16-14 and would not trail for the remainder of the match.
??x2? pic.twitter.com/HFOa7QpIPs
— Alabama Volleyball (@AlabamaVBall) October 3, 2019
Players of the Match
Hayley McSparin
- Played well on both ends of the ball up the middle, hitting .462 with eight kills and just two errors while also stuffing four blocks.
Kaylee Thomas
- Anchored the back-row defense with a career-high 24 digs while also finishing error-free in serve receive.
Up Next
Alabama travels to Athens, Ga., to face the Georgia Bulldogs (9-4, 1-1 SEC) on Sunday, Oct. 6 at 1 p.m. CT.
For the latest information on the team, follow @AlabamaVball on Twitter and Instagram and Alabama Volleyball on Facebook. General athletic news can also be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.
