Auburn caps non-conference play with sweep of Belmont

AUBURN, Ala. – Making a statement in its final non-conference match of the regular season, Auburn volleyball (8-1) swept Belmont (2-8) in dominating fashion (25-8, 25-12, 23-12) Saturday at Auburn Arena to close out the Auburn Invitational.

"We've got three hitters that can terminate," said head coach Brent Crouch. "We run kind of a slower ball in the middle and faster to the pins. It's a little unusual, but it allows us to distribute the ball evenly across the front line. If you have three hitters in each zone, it's going to be difficult for opposing teams to key up on anyone."

Junior Rebekah Rath paced the Tigers offensively with 14 kills while attacking at a .429 clip. Rath added an ace at the service line, a pair of digs and three blocks. Graduate student Liz Reich chipped in 11 kills on a .409 attacking percentage. She recorded one assist, one dig and a pair of blocks.

Serving as the starting setter for the Tigers, sophomore Jackie Barrett dished out 24 assists and led the team to a .345 attacking percentage in the match. Barrett added one kill and an ace. She also totaled 19 digs to record her third consecutive double-double.

At the service line, Auburn totaled six aces with five different Tigers picking up an ace. Senior Bella Rosenthall led the team with two aces. She also tied Barrett for the team-lead in digs with 19. Rosenthall has now totaled at least 10 digs in nine consecutive matches.

At the net, the Tigers totaled 10.5 blocks with senior Tatum Shipes pacing the team with 7.0 total. Shipes also added four kills off 10 swings. Barrett added three blocks for Auburn.
Defensively, the Tigers held Belmont to a -.093 hitting percentage in the match. It marked the first time the Tigers have held an opponent to a negative hitting percentage since Jacksonville State on Sept. 20, 2014.

SET ONE
The Tigers broke out early with a 3-0 run with help from kills by Rath and Reich. Auburn continued to build its lead to 9-2 with a service ace from freshman Kate Curtis and a pair of Tiger blocks to force a Belmont timeout. Attack errors plagued the Bruins in the late stages and the Tigers extended their lead to 19-6. Auburn closed the set with a back-to-back kills from Rath and Barrett for a resounding 25-8 victory.
 
SET TWO
Belmont jumped out early to a 4-1 lead, forcing the Tigers to play from behind. Auburn responded with a 6-0 run highlighted by two kills from Reich to take a 7-4 lead. Offensively, Tigers dominating the set hitting .462 with 13 team kills while adding four aces from the service line to cruise to a 25-12 victory.
 
SET THREE
The two squad traded points evenly through the early stages of the final set. With the score 7-all, Auburn used a pair of kills to find some breathing room. It wasn't until Curtis took over at the service line that Auburn strung together a 5-0 run with kills from Rath and Shipes and a big Tiger block to open the set, 20-10. Barrett and senior Elif Su Yavuz put the exclamation mark on the match with a block to claim the 25-12 victory.
 
UP NEXT
Auburn is set to begin Southeastern Conference play on Wednesday, welcoming undefeated Ole Miss to Auburn Arena. First serve on ESPNU is set for 8 p.m. CT.