Alabama
1-0,0-0SEC
Grambling State
0-1,0-0SWAC
Alabama Volleyball Battles for Pair of Opening Day Wins Friday
8/30/2024 11:35:00 PM | Volleyball
The Crimson Tide defeats Grambling State, 3-2, and The Citadel, 3-1
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama volleyball opened its 2024 season Friday at the Crimson Tide Invitational, earning a pair of hard-fought wins over Grambling State, 3-2, and The Citadel, 3-1, in front of a raucous Foster Auditorium crowd.
Alabama (2-0) found itself trailing Grambling State (0-2) through three sets before surging back with a decisive 25-12 win in the fourth to send it to a deciding fifth, which the Tide won, 15-9, to complete the comeback. In the second match of the day, Alabama and The Citadel (1-1) split the first two frames and the teams battled past the 25-point mark in the third, with the Tide ultimately claiming the 27-25 win to move ahead in the match, 2-1. Tied at 22-22 late in the fourth, Alabama closed it out with a 3-1 run to win, 25-23, and take the match.
Sophie Agee led all players with 42 kills across both matches, hitting .308 on the offensive end while tacking on six blocks defensively. Kayla Keshock and Callie Kieffer split setting duties, earning 47 and 46 assists respectively, with Francesca Bertucci leading the team with 31 digs.
Four freshmen made their collegiate debuts Friday, including Ashby Daniel, Ellery Rees, Lindsey Brown and Leilia Toailoa.
FROM HEAD COACH RASHINDA REED
"I am really proud of our players. We had to fight through a lot of adversity today. I love the fact that we were learning with every single match. Today's wins were just a matter of staying in the fight and that we kept going. In matches like today it would be easy for a team to give up, but we didn't do that. We talk about staying locked in, staying present with each other and good communication and I think we made those adjustments today."
STAT LEADERS VS. GRAMBLING STATE
- Kills: Sophie Agee - 22
- Assists: Kayla Keshock - 29
- Digs: Natalie Repetti - 16
- Blocks: Ashby Daniel - 4
- Aces: Natalie Repetti - 3
SET-BY-SET VS. GRAMBLING STATE
- Set 1: Alabama 25, Grambling State 12
- Set 2: Grambling State 25, Alabama 16
- Set 3: Grambling State 25, Alabama 20
- Set 4: Alabama 25, Grambling State 12
- Set 5: Alabama 15, Grambling State 9
STAT LEADERS VS. THE CITADEL
- Kills: Sophie Agee - 20
- Assists: Callie Kieffer - 26
- Digs: Francesca Bertucci - 17
- Blocks: Chaise Campbell - 4
- Aces: Kayla Keshock, Callie Kieffer - 2
SET-BY-SET VS. THE CITADEL
- Set 1: Alabama 25, The Citadel 22
- Set 2: The Citadel 25, Alabama 17
- Set 3: Alabama 27, The Citadel 25
- Set 4: Alabama 25, The Citadel 23
