Alabama
11-15,3-12SEC
Ole Miss
17-10,7-8SEC
Comeback Bid Falls Short as Volleyball Falls to Ole Miss in Five Sets
11/24/2024 5:32:00 PM | Volleyball
The Crimson Tide rallied from an 0-2 match deficit but could not win the deciding fifth set
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – After dropping the first two sets, Alabama rallied to win the third and fourth over Ole Miss, tying the match and sending it to a deciding fifth set. The Rebels outlasted the Crimson Tide in the fifth however, winning 15-9 to take the match and stop the reverse sweep attempt Sunday afternoon in Foster Auditorium.
Alabama (11-15, 3-12 SEC) dropped a close opening set, 25-22, before Ole Miss (17-10, 7-8 SEC) earned a decisive 25-13 win in the second to take a 2-0 match lead. The Tide fought back with 25-20 wins in the third and fourth to send it to a fifth set and set up a potential reverse sweep over the Rebels. Alabama led 6-5 near the halfway mark of the fifth before Ole Miss scored four in a row to move ahead 9-6, riding that momentum to a 6-3 run to close out the set and win, 15-9, stopping the Tide's comeback attempt.
FROM HEAD COACH RASHINDA REED
"The future is bright. This team battles and we get after it. We're not a team to sleep on. I am incredibly proud of them. This was our first opportunity at a reverse sweep in quite some time so it just shows that even late in the season we continue to battle and grow regardless of where we are. Ashby [Daniel] and Leilia [Toailoa] came off the bench and made a huge impact in big moments today. Not only that, but the support from the team was fantastic. Nobody else was mad that they were being subbed out or not playing. Everyone was celebrating and supporting everybody else and that's the kind of culture we are trying to build in this program."
NOTES
- The match is just Alabama's second five-set loss of the season, holding a 5-2 record on the year including a 3-2 mark in SEC play
- Leilia Toailoa led the team with a season-best 13 kills along with four blocks
- Freshman Ashby Daniel made her fifth appearance of the season and first in SEC play, earning a pair of kills and a season-best four blocks
STAT LEADERS
- Kills: Leilia Toailoa - 13
- Assists: Kayla Keshock - 19
- Digs: Francesca Bertucci - 19
- Blocks: Jordyn Towns - 5
- Aces: Lindsey Brown - 2
SET-BY-SET
- Set 1: Ole Miss 25, Alabama 22
- Set 2: Ole Miss 25, Alabama 13
- Set 3: Alabama 25, Ole Miss 20
- Set 4: Alabama 25, Ole Miss 20
- Set 5: Ole Miss 15, Alabama 9
UP NEXT
- Friday, Nov. 29 vs. LSU – Tuscaloosa, Ala. – 3 p.m. CT
