Alabama
Georgia
Alabama Volleyball Earns First Win of the Season, Defeating Georgia 3-1
11/7/2020 4:51:00 PM | Volleyball
The Crimson Tide breaks a four-match win streak by the Bulldogs in the series, its first win since 2016
ATHENS, Ga. – Alabama volleyball earned its first win of the season Saturday afternoon against Georgia, defeating the Bulldogs 3-1.
The win is Alabama's (1-4) first over Georgia (2-3) since 2016, snapping a four-match win streak from the Bulldogs in the series against the Crimson Tide.
Four Alabama players finished with double-digit kills, leading to a season-high 53 for the team. Abby Marjama led the team for the fourth-straight match with a season high 17. Alyiah Wells was close behind with a season best 11 along with a team leading .318 hitting percentage and five blocks. Riley Fisbeck paced the offense with a career best 45 assists.
Georgia scored four unanswered points to start the first set and maintained the early momentum en route to a 12-4 lead before Alabama called a timeout. The Tide closed the gap after the break, making it a two-point game after a challenged call was overturned in Alabama's favor as a service ace and the Bulldogs took a timeout up 14-12. Georgia took its second timeout two points later with the score knotted up at 14-14. Alabama tied the score twice before taking its first lead at 21-20 and then held on to win, 25-23.
The Tide took an early 7-4 lead in set two before the Bulldogs scored four in a row to move in front 8-7. After three more tie scores, Alabama rattled off three unanswered to lead 13-10 and Georgia took a timeout. The Tide led by six at the 20-point mark and held on to win by the same margin, 25-19. With Alabama leading 6-5 in set three, Georgia went on a 6-0 run to lead 11-6 and the Tide called a timeout. The Bulldogs maintained their lead to avoid the sweep with a 25-21 win in the third.
Georgia held the early momentum in the fourth before Alabama rallied back to take a 9-8 lead. The Bulldogs moved back ahead 12-10 before the Tide responded with a 4-0 run, forcing a Georgia timeout at 14-12. The Bulldogs came out of the break with a 4-0 run to retake the lead. Later with Georgia ahead 23-20, Alabama charged back with five unanswered to win the fourth set and the match.
STAT LEADERS
- Kills | Abby Marjama - 17
- Assists | Riley Fisbeck - 45
- Aces | Kaylee Thomas - 3
- Digs | Madelyn St. Germain - 12
- Blocks | Alyiah Wells - 5
SCORES BY SET
- 1st | Alabama 25, Georgia 23
- 2nd | Alabama 25, Georgia 19
- 3rd | Georgia 25, Alabama 21
- 4th | Alabama 25, Georgia 23
MATCH NOTES
- Alabama's last win against Georgia on Sept. 30, 2016 was also on the road
- Today's win improves the Tide's all-time record in Athens to 13-11
- In addition to the season-best 53 kills, Alabama's seven blocks is also a season high
- The match is the first this season in which the Tide had four players with double-digit kills
PLAYER OF THE MATCH
Alyiah Wells (Sophomore – Memphis, Tenn.)
- Totaled a season-best 11 kills
- Led the team with a .318 hitting percentage and five blocks
UP NEXT
Alabama and Georgia close the weekend with a second match on Sunday, Nov. 8 at 1 p.m. CT live on the SEC Network
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.
