COLUMBIA, S.C. – In the first road match of the 2020 season, Auburn volleyball battled late but fell to South Carolina in straight sets inside the Carolina Volleyball Center Wednesday night.
Auburn (0-3, 0-3 SEC) refused to give in and fought off multiple set points throughout the match (15-25, 16-25, 20-25). Auburn's strongest performance came in the final stanza as the Tigers went on a 7-0 run to cut South Carolina's (2-1, 2-1 SEC) lead to three before the Gamecocks silenced the run.
The Tigers capitalized on Gamecock miscues and was strong at the service line to string together a strong run late after South Carolina seemed to put away the final set early. The effort mirrored Auburn's first stanza as a big block help fight off a pair of set points.
Wednesday's match marked the collegiate debut of freshman setter Jackie Barrett. Missing Auburn's season-opening series against No. 4 Florida due to injury, Barrett turned in a strong performance debuting on the road.
Barrett dished out 19 total assists and was a major part o Auburn's late 7-0 run in the third set with two aces. Barret closed the night with three aces at the service line. She also dumped three kills over the net on six attempts. Defensively, Barrett tallied five digs and was strong at the net with a pair of blocks.
Junior outside hitter Val Green matched her season high output with eight kills. With an aggressive style of offense that is a pillar of first-year head coach Brent Crouch's system, Green posted a match-high 40 attempts. Junior Tatum Shipes set a season-high with six kills and added a block and four digs.
Auburn's middles once again turned in a strong offensive performance. Senior Jaeden Brown hammered home a season-high five kills on a .333 attacking percentage, while senior Chesney McClellan added three. At the net, McClellan led the squad with four blocks with Brown picking up two. The Tigers closed the match with six total blocks as a squad.
Seeing time at starting libero for the third straight match, senior Payton White recorded nine digs. Junior Bella Rosenthall added seven digs and dished out three assists.
UP NEXT
It will be a short turnaround for the Tigers as Auburn returns to the court against South Carolina on Thursday at 3:30 p.m. CT on the SEC Network+.
Tigers battle late in road test at South Carolina
Val Green goes up for a kill during Auburn's season opener against No.4 Florida.