AUBURN, Ala. – In the final road series of the shortened fall season, Auburn volleyball (0-4, 0-4 SEC) faces the defending Co-Southeastern Conference Champion No. 2 Kentucky (4-0, 4-0 SEC) this weekend inside Memorial Coliseum.
"They are very physical, very athletic," said head coach Brent Crouch. "They do some really good things out there. Some people are giving them votes as the top team in the country right now. We can look it at it in two ways. It's going to be hard to get a win against a team that's that good at this point and where we are in our development. On the other hand, I want to play the best teams all the time. You really get to measure yourself against what the goals are and what the standards are.
Sometimes you can get lulled into thinking you're doing some things okay when you're playing teams that aren't great. It can slow your development a little bit. The goal at the end is to get as good as we possible can, and you don't get that way playing teams other than the best. We're happy we're playing good teams, and it is fine with me that we're playing them right now."
The final road trip of the season begins on Saturday with a 3 p.m. CT first serve on the SEC Network+. The weekend concludes on Sunday with a nationally televised contest on the SEC Network. First serve is set for 3 p.m. CT.
QUICK HITS
- Auburn wraps up its road slate with its second meeting with a nationally ranked opponent as the Tigers trek to No. 2 Kentucky. Auburn is searching for its first win over Kentucky since 2010.
- After its record-setting performance at South Carolina, Auburn now ranks 8th nationally in blocking (2.62 blocks/set) with two Tigers - Jaeden Brown and Chesney McClellan - tied for 13th nationally with a 1.23 blocks per set mark.
- Tatum Shipes earned her first double-double of the season (11 K/10 D) at South Carolina (10/28/20). She leads Auburn with seven career double-double performances.
- Val Green ranks 17th nationally in attacks per set with a 10.69 average. The mark ranks fifth in the SEC.
SCOUTING KENTUCKY
No. 2 Kentucky stands on top of the SEC standings with Florida with a perfect 4-0 record midway through the fall season. The Wildcats are coming off a road series sweep of No. 9 Missouri. Kentucky's effort at Missouri earned multiple individual honors as Ali Stumler (Offensive Player), Gabby Curry (Co-Defensive) and Madison Lilley (Setter) all won weekly honors from the SEC.
Kentucky is one of the top offensive powers in the SEC and leads the league in five categories, including hitting percentage (.339) and team kills (235). The Wildcats leads the nation in kills per set (15.67) and ranks second nationally in hitting percentage.
Lilley paces Kentucky's heavy-hitting offense, dishing out 12.53 assists per set to rank second nationally. Lilley also ranks second on the squad with 43 total digs and is one of three Wildcats with double-digit blocks.
Offensively, Stumler and Avery Skinner are tied for the team lead with 65 kills each. They duo is tied for fifth in the SEC with their kill output. Skinner ranks also ranks fifth in the league with a .390 hitting percentage.
Five Wildcats have 20+ digs the season led by Gabby Curry. Elise Goetzinger is the Wildcats' leading blocker at the net with 17.0 total.
UP NEXT
Following a bye week, Auburn wraps up the fall season with back-to-back home matches against Tennessee. The series begins on Wednesday, Nov. 18 with a 7 p.m. CT first serve on the SEC Network. The final game for the fall is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 9 at 5 p.m. CT.