Alabama
4-0,0-0SEC
Prairie View A&M
0-5,0-0SWAC
Alabama Volleyball Sweeps Prairie View A&M Thursday in Montgomery
9/5/2024 7:19:00 PM | Volleyball
The Crimson Tide continues its weekend Friday against tournament host Alabama State
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Alabama volleyball opened its weekend at the ASU Collegiate Cup Thursday afternoon with a sweep over Prairie View A&M by set scores of 25-18, 25-21 and 26-24.
Alabama (4-0) was in control for the majority of the first two sets before Prairie View A&M (0-5) hit its stride in the third, leading 7-3 before the Crimson Tide tried to halt the Panthers' momentum with a timeout. Still trailing by four later at 15-11, Alabama went on a 5-1 run to tie it at 16-16 before a Natalie Repetti ace gave the Tide its first lead of the frame. After a PVAMU timeout, the score was tied five times down the stretch, including at 24-24 after the Panthers scored back-to-back points with the Tide at match point. A kill from Chaise Campbell gave Alabama match point again and block from Campbell and Paris Thompson gave the Tide the set and the match.
Freshman Ellery Rees led the offense with 10 kills and a .471 hitting percentage, both of which are season highs. Chaise Campbell was close behind with nine kills while stuffing a team-leading five blocks on defense. Francesca Bertucci also added a season-best 19 digs.
FROM HEAD COACH RASHINDA REED
"I felt like Prairie View really challenged us. They are a great serve receive team, a great defensive team and incredibly scrappy. That's very similar to what we'll see in conference play. They just kept the ball in the air and were incredibly relentless. That challenged us to stay level and composed as we worked through it. I was just proud of how the team composed themselves and how they worked together as a team."
NOTES
- Alabama's nine blocks are a season-best, beating the seven from the season opener vs. Grambling State (Aug. 30)
- Ellery Rees' 10 kills and .471 hitting percentage are both season highs for the freshman
- Francesca Bertucci's 19 digs bests her previous season high of 17 from the four-set win over The Citadel (Aug. 30)
- Chaise Campbell led the team with five blocks and was second with nine kills, both of which are season bests
STAT LEADERS
- Kills: Ellery Rees - 10
- Assists: Kayla Keshock - 16
- Digs: Francesca Bertucci - 19
- Blocks: Chaise Campbell - 5
- Aces: Lindsey Brown, Natalie Repetti - 2
SET-BY-SET
- Set 1: Alabama 25, PVAMU 18
- Set 2: Alabama 25, PVAMU 21
- Set 3: Alabama 26, PVAMU 24
UP NEXT: ASU COLLEGIATE CUP (MONTGOMERY, ALA.)
- Friday, Sept. 4 at Alabama State – 5:30 p.m. CT
- Saturday, Sept. 5 vs. Arizona – 11 a.m. CT
