Auburn, Ala. – Auburn heads back on the road for a pair of SEC matches, traveling to Mississippi State and Arkansas to close out play in October.
The Tigers and the Bulldogs will go head-to-head at 8 p.m. CT in Starkville, Miss., on Oct. 25. The match will be televised on SEC Network. Auburn closes out the month at Arkansas, on Oct. 27 at 1 p.m. CT. Sunday's contest is available on the SEC Network+.
"We have to focus on the same improvement we made this past week," head coach Rick Nold said. "When we're able to play our style, that gritty and aggressive style. We're able to play pretty good volleyball. That has to be our focus."
QUICK HITS
- The Auburn (6-12, 0-7 SEC) volleyball team fell in four sets to Georgia last Sunday in Auburn.
- Freshman Lily Thomason had a solid day for the Tigers, totaling a career-best 14 kills for the squad.
- Sophomore Tatum Shipes put together another double-double, having 12 kills and 14 digs.
- Auburn's backrow was led by sophomore libero Bella Rosenthall, notching a career-best 26 digs in the match. Along with Shipes' 14, sophomore Katie Persons added a season-best six digs.
- The Tiger blockers had another solid match, finishing with 11 blocks overall. It marked the second straight contest the squad totaled double-digit stuffs.
UP NEXT
Auburn faces off with Mississippi State for the second time in three matches, welcoming the Bulldogs to Auburn Arena on Friday, Nov. 1 at 6 p.m. CT.
SCOUTING MISSISSIPPI STATE
- The Mississippi State Bulldogs enter the weekend at 11-9 (0-8 SEC) after dropping a pair of matches at home against Texas A&M and Arkansas this past weekend.
- Senior Alleah Stamatis is tied for the league lead in double-doubles with nine on the season.
- Freshman Callie Minshew has started every contest and ranks second on the squad in total kills (174) and total service aces (17).
- As a team, the Bulldogs are third in the SEC in digs, averaging 14.76 per set and totaling 1166 on the season.
SCOUTING ARKANSAS
- The Arkansas Razorbacks come in at 7-12 (1-6 SEC), picking up their first SEC win over Mississippi State in four sets last Sunday.
- Freshman Jillian Gillen ranks ninth in kills (3.52 avg/s) and points (3.94 avg/s) in conference play.
- Junior Klaire Trainor paces the squad defensively with a 2.78 dig/s average.
- Sophomore Ellease Crumpton leads the team behind the service line with a .29 sa/s mark that ranks ninth in the SEC.