Sept. 8, 2009
AUBURN, Ala. - The Auburn volleyball team battled, but dropped a five-set match to Jacksonville State, 3-2 (21-25, 25-15, 25-17, 21-25, 9-15), on Tuesday evening at the Student Activities Center.
"It was a good match and Jacksonville State is a good team," Wade Benson, head volleyball coach, said. "We're still not where we need to be, but we're coming along and you could see in games two and three that we have the upside to defeat a good team."
Junior Alyssa Davis led the Tigers with a career-best 13 kills on 17 attacks and two errors for a .647 attack percentage. Freshman Sarah Bullock and sophomore Kelly Fidero each finished with 11 kills, while junior Liz Crouch had 14 digs.
As a team, Auburn (5-3) finished with 13.5 total blocks and a .267 attack percentage.
Leading the Gamecocks (6-2) was Alyx Schulte with a match-high 15 kills, while Kara Slater and Caitlin Vorbeck finished with 12 and 11 kills, respectively.
In the first set, JSU grabbed the early 3-2 lead on a pair of Tiger errors. The two teams would exchange points and see three ties before the Gamecocks pushed to a 12-10 lead on a kill from Slater. The score remained close throughout the set until a Gamecock error gave Auburn the 21-20 advantage. JSU closed out the match, however, on a 5-0 run to take the set 25-21.
The Tigers jumped out to a quick 5-2 lead with the help of two Fidero kills and a service ace from Sara Shanks. Auburn continued to push the lead, going up by as much as six at 10-4. The Tigers went on a 8-2 run at the 12-7 mark, highlighted by a pair of kills from Davis, to take the 20-9 lead. Auburn solidified the win with a kill from Davis, 25-15.
Set three saw the Tigers down early, 3-2, but a pair of kills from Bullock assisted in a 8-2 run to give Auburn the 10-5 lead. The Tigers continued to attack and went up by as many as nine at 20-11. The Gamecocks fought, but Auburn went on to win set three 25-17.
The fourth set was a battle for the two teams, seeing eight ties throughout the set. JSU took the lead and held the advantage until a Gamecock attack error tied the set a nine apiece. The teams would go back and forth, exchanging and taking the lead from each other, until a kill from Brittney Whitten gave JSU the 16-15 advantage. The two squads continued to battle, but the Gamecocks tied the match up with a 25-21 win in set four.
The Gamecocks came out with an early advantage in the final set of the match, going up 6-3. JSU held on to the lead throughout the final set and came away with the 15-9 victory.
The Tigers head to Statesboro, Ga., for the Bash in the Boro tournament hosted by Georgia Southern. Auburn faces Coastal Carolina on Friday, at 4 p.m. and then takes on Wake Forest on Saturday, at 9 a.m. The team closes out the tournament with a match against host Georgia Southern on 6 p.m.