Sept. 19, 2010
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The Auburn volleyball team closed out its tough SEC West weekend in Fayetteville, Ark., and came away with a hard-fought 3-2 (25-20, 18-25, 25-16, 18-25, 15-10) victory over the Arkansas Razorbacks. The Tigers improve to 10-4 on the year and are 1-1 in the SEC, while the Razorbacks fall to 7-6 overall and 1-1 in the conference.
"It was a gutsy performance by the team and they pulled together in the end to come away with the tough win," head coach Wade Benson said. "We've had a long road schedule to start the season and it is satisfactory to finish with a very satisfying win."
Senior Morgan Johns led the Tigers with a season-best 17 kills and finished with a solid .429 attack percentage. Sophomore Sarah Bullock tallied her third double-double of the season, finishing with 11 kills and a career-high 21 digs.
Setters Christina Solverson and Chelsea Wintzinger had 24 and 21 assists, respectively, while senior libero Liz Crouch had 12 digs for Auburn. Senior Lauren Mellor had five blocks (three solo and two assists), while freshman Camila Jersonsky tallied four blocks.
Kendall Cleveland had 14 kills and 10 digs for Arkansas, while Jasmine Norton tallied 10 kills and 14 digs. Janeliss Torres finished with 12 kills and setter Raymariely Santos had a match-high 39 assists.
Auburn opened the first set on a 4-1 run highlighted by a kill by Bullock and one by Johns. The Tigers utilized a three-point run to go up by five at 9-4 and held on to the lead throughout the set. A kill from Katherine Culwell put Auburn up at 21-15 and the Tigers finished out the set with a 25-20 win.
The second set started with a 6-2 run by the Razorbacks and the home team maintained its lead in the early parts of the set. The Tigers came within two at 11-9 on kills by Bullock and Johns, but Arkansas put together a five-point rally to take a 16-9 lead. The Razorbacks went on to win set two, 25-18.
Arkansas used a quick 5-1 run to take the early lead in the third set. Down three at 8-5, the Tigers capitalized on a seven-point rally to take their first lead of the set at 12-8. A solo block by Mellor and kill from Bullock pushed Auburn to a five-point advantage at 17-12 and, at 18-15, the Tigers closed the set on a 7-1 run to win 25-16.
A service ace by Culwell and a kill from Bullock led to an Auburn 4-1 lead at the start of set four, but the Razorbacks battled back to take a 7-6 advantage on a four-point rally. Auburn, down 13-11, responded with a four-point run of its own to take a 14-13 lead. The two squads fought back and forth as each looked for a substantial lead until, locked at 18, the Razorbacks scored the final seven points to win the set 25-18.
A kill by Johns and a service ace from Wintzinger gave the Tigers a 6-2 lead to open the final set, but the Razorbacks battled to come within a point a 7-6. Two more kills from Johns and one by Jersonsky put Auburn up at 12-8 and a solo block from Mellor gave the Tigers the 15-10 victory.
Auburn returns home to the Student Activities Center for the first time in three weeks Sept. 24 for a 7 p.m. match against Kentucky. The Tigers conclude the weekend Sunday, Sept. 26, with a 1:30 p.m. match against the Tennessee Volunteers, who were picked to win the conference this season.