AUBURN, Ala. – Following its bounce-back victory on Friday, Auburn Volleyball kept the momentum rolling into Saturday, sweeping Mercer 3-0 (25-15, 25-20, 25-11), improving to 7-1 on the season.
Bel Zimmerman put down a career night against the Buccaneers but Saturday's opening set belonged to fellow Missouri native Madison Scheer. The Eureka product exploded for seven kills on 13 swings with zero errors in the first.
Scheer's brilliance, combined with three aces, two from Zimmerman and a third from Chelsey Harmon, was more than enough to secure set No. 1.
While the Tiger offense wasn't as stout in the second set, the Auburn defense continued to flex its muscles all evening long.
The Orange and Blue held Mercer to -.074 in the first set and was even stronger in the second, keeping the Bears to -.120. Auburn held Mercer to -.053 for the contest, marking the first time the Tigers held an opponent to a negative hitting percentage since Sept. 6, 2022, against Alabama A&M.
Senior setter Jackie Barrett was making plays in every corner of the court. Not only did Barrett lead the offense to a .346 hitting percentage, she also stacked up four blocks and a career-high five aces, two of which came in the second set.
When the dust settled at the end of the frame, Auburn owned a two-set advantage.
Barrett and Co. went straight to work in the third. Zimmerman swung for .556 and five more kills to bring her total to 14. Scheer added three of her own to finish the evening with 12. Three of Barrett's five aces came in the final stanza to put even more pressure on Mercer.
Offensively, the Tigers threw up a staggering .619 hitting percentage in the third set.
It was Auburn's front row who put the final nail in the coffin. Kendal Kemp had a season-high seven blocks and none more impactful than the last. Kemp, along with Kyla Swanson who had four blocks of her own, rejected the final Bear attack to give the Tigers its third sweep of the season.
MATCH NOTES
- Auburn hit .346 for the match, marking the sixth time the Tigers have hit over .300 this season
- The Tigers held Mercer to -.053, marking the first time Auburn held an opponent negative since Sept. 6, 2022, against Alabama A&M
- Auburn collected 11.0 total team blocks, marking the second-straight match the team has eclipsed at least 10.0 and the third time this season
- Auburn's nine aces were a season-high and the most since putting down 11 at Missouri on Oct. 15, 2022
- Madison Scheer (13 kills) reached double-digits for the second-straight match and fifth time this season
- Sarah Morton (10 digs) reached double-digits for the third-straight match and the fifth time this season
- Kendal Kemp collected a season-high seven blocks
- Bel Zimmerman (14 kills) reached double-digits for the third-straight match and her three aces matched her season-high
UP NEXT
Auburn heads back out on the road for its final non-conference tournament, facing South Alabama, UAB and Samford in Mobile, Alabama Sept. 14-16. The Tigers will return home to Neville Arena to open SEC play on Friday, Sept. 22 against Florida at 6:30 p.m. CT.
Admission to all Auburn Volleyball matches in 2023 is free.