COLUMBIA, Mo. – Another day, another dramatic victory for Auburn Volleyball.
On the road and down two sets, the Tigers reverse swept Missouri, 3-2 (21-25, 21-25, 25-17, 25-17, 15-12) to get to 17-1 on the season and 6-1 in the SEC.
Both offenses were operating at a high clip in the opening set. Freshman Akasha Anderson ended with four kills and three others had three kills apiece.
Fellow youngster Kendal Kemp made her presence known at the net early. Her first block of the afternoon was also Kemp's 100th of the season. Now with 102, the Eagan, Minnesota native has the fourth-most in single-season history and counting.
Kemp wasn't too shabby on the attack either, piling up 10 kills on .714 hitting.
However, .321 hitting from Missouri was too potent of an attack to overcome as the home side jumped out to the early lead.
It was a similar story in set No. 2. Anderson, Kemp and Madison Scheer each recorded three kills as the Orange and Blue hit north of .300.
Once again, though, a heavy-handed attack from Missouri led to a .486 hitting percentage and eventually a two-set advantage.
Head coach Brent Crouch needed to spark to ignite his team and it began at the service line.
Fallan Lanham led the way in the third with two of the team's five aces in the set. Keeping Missouri of system set up Jackie Barrett to distribute the Auburn attack.
Anderson added six kills on eight attacks with zero errors. The Reston, Virginia product would finish the afternoon with a game-high 20.
As a team, Crouch's squad swung for a monstrous .458 to take the third set and move the contest into a fourth.
Aggressive serving was the name of the game once more.
This time, it was libero Sarah Morton who stepped up to the line with a purpose. Three straight aces from Morton gave Auburn an early four-point lead and her team never looked back.
Though Zoe Slaughter only recorded one ace, her stout serving kept Missouri guessing as well.
A block apiece from Scheer, Anderson, Kemp and Chelsey Harmon combined with the effort from the service line, and all of the sudden the match was heading to a deciding fifth set.
Crouch couldn't have asked for a better-executed fifth frame.
Missouri native Madison Scheer came alive for five kills and Anderson delivered three as well. Harmon and Kemp threatened out of the middle and Missouri just had no answers.
As Scheer delivered the final blow, her 16th of the match, Auburn stole yet another victory from an SEC opponent, 3-2.
MATCH NOTES
- Auburn improves to 17-1 and 6-1 in the SEC (tied for first)
- The Tigers had 11 aces on Saturday, the sixth time Auburn has had 10-plus aces in a match this season
- Auburn's .321 hitting percentage represented the sixth time the Tigers have hit over. 300 this season and the first time since playing Jacksonville State on Sept. 17
- Kendal Kemp now eclipsed the 100-block mark on the season. Her 102 total blocks are the fourth-most in single-season history
- Akasha Anderson (20 kills) reached the 20-kill mark for the fifth time this season
- Sarah Morton grabbed 16 digs. It was the 16th time Morton has had 10-plus digs in a match in 2022
- Morton secured three aces for the third time this season, tying her career-best
CROUCH'S COMMENTS
"I thought that we didn't start with the right energy level and that's becoming a little bit of a theme for us that we need to start focusing on. It's definitely connected with the youth of this team. Missouri is a very good volleyball team with some incredibly physical outside hitters and I think they caught us on our heels a bit. Hopefully, it's a blessing for us. It's tough to win in the SEC, so I'm really proud of the team.
"I felt like those last three sets showed where our team can get to. We challenged a few of them to hit harder serves and they did exactly what we wanted them to. Sarah had three aces in a row and Zoe came in and hit some tough ones. Those two turned it around for us. Once we got them in trouble, then the rest just becomes easier. It's easier to make some block moves and get more touches."
On Kendal Kemp reaching 100 blocks…
"She's not even close to how good she can get blocking. That's not to take away anything from what she's doing this season. It's amazing that she's at that number right now. She's going to get better at reading and covering more ground when the other team is getting good passes. When she does, she's going to break all the records here at Auburn."
NEXT UP
Auburn remains in Columbia for one more match with Missouri. First serve on Sunday, Oct. 16 is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT. The match will also be broadcast on the SEC Network.