BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Something new, resembling something old.
A record-tying effort in blocks and potent serving led Auburn (7-0, 0-0) to another gritty win over Troy, 3-2 (25-16, 25-23, 23-25, 25-18), earning the Tiger's best start to a season since 2012.
As the Tigers began to feel out the first set, it was the Orange and Blue's serving effort that allowed Auburn to create some separation.
Aces from Fallan Lanham, Zoe Slaughter and Jordan Sinness had Troy out of system early and often. While Sarah Morton didn't record an ace, her ferocity at the line led to four straight points midway through the frame, giving her team a commanding lead.
However, it was the wall Auburn built at the net that made the biggest impact. Six bocks, including three from junior middle blocker Chelsey Harmon, made certain the Tigers would finish out the set.
Harmon and company continued their effort in the set. The Puyallup, Washington native collected two more early blocks to set her team in motion.
Madison Scheer also made her presence felt in the second frame. The freshman outside hitter piled up three more kills to inch her way to seven.
While Troy made things interesting midway through the affair, Auburn leaned back to its bread and butter to close things out. Sinness' second ace of the afternoon gave the Tigers a two-point advantage and two points later, Harmon and Anderson slammed the door shut with the team's 10th block of the match.
Scheer seemed determined to get the Tigers out of third. As the Trojans whipped out to the early lead in the set, it was Scheer who pulled her team back into it. Surpassing her career-high with 14 kills, the Eureka, Missouri native kept plowing away, even as Troy made multiple runs throughout the set.
When all the dust settled, Scheer stacked up a career-best 17 kills on .308 hitting.
Meanwhile, Harmon equaled the effort in resetting a career-high. Harmon's 10.0 total blocks were not only a career-best but were the most amongst any Tiger this season.
Sarah Morton's first ace of the match gave Auburn the brief lead but a 3-0 run from Troy extended the match to a fourth set.
Morton also seemed to make every play in the back row. The freshman grabbed a match-high 25 digs, resetting her career-high and setting the bar as the most of any player in the Orange and Blue in 2022.
Auburn had no curfew on its block party as the team effort extended into the fourth. Five more rejections gave the Tigers control of the set. The team's 17.0 blocks tied the record for the most in a four-set match in program history.
An ace apiece from Anderson, Jackie Barrett and Cassidy Tanton allowed the Tigers to solidify its 7-0 start to the season, its best effort since 2012.
MATCH NOTES
- Auburn's 7-0 start is now the best under head coach Brent Crouch and its best since 2012.
- The Tiger's 17.0 blocks matches the program record for most blocks in a four-set match
- Madison Scheer's 17 kills were a career-high for the freshman
- Sarah Morton collected a career-best 25 digs
- Jordan Sinness (29 assists, 10 digs) recorded her second double-double of the season.
- Akasha Anderson's five blocks were a career-high
- Saturday was the third time Bel Zimmerman recorded 4.0 blocks in a match.
- Chelsey Harmon reset her career-best in blocks with 10.0, and was the first Auburn player to reach double-digits in blocks this season
CROUCH'S COMMENTS
"I thought it was another hard-fought match. Troy was the best opponent we've played so far, and to get a win after the five-setter last night was huge for us. We had less than 24 hours to turn that around but it was a great win and another step forward for us.
On the team's blocking effort…
"We felt we left a lot of blocks on the table last night. So we did some video this morning and showed all the blocks that we should have made and I thought they responded. We lined up better, were more aggressive and were making the right decisions. To finish the match with Kendal [Kemp] closing on the right side, which she's working hard at, was incredibly cool to see.
On Sarah Morton's big day…
"I keep seeing her get more and more comfortable each week. Their outside hitting tended to hit across a little more. We knew she was going to have a lot of opportunities and she stepped up. She was also taking them where we could run the offense in transition, which was a little tough for us to do in serve-receive. But in transition, we were distributing the ball well."