BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Behind Lauren Dreves’ third double-double of the season (15 kills, 16 digs), Auburn (8-1, 0-0) kicked off the Alabama Showdown with a 3-0 (25-18, 18-25, 25-19, 25-17) win over Samford (5-3, 0-0).
Early and often, both Kalei Edson and Peyton Dunn went to the freshman Lauren Dreves. The Tigers’ six-row sensation paced the offense with four kills to give her squad the early lead.
With Fallan Lanham and Alexis Dacosta running down digs in the back row, combined with Emma Moore and Chelsey McCurdy grabbing block touches at the net, Auburn held Samford to just .040 hitting at the midway point.
Between Dreves’ four kills, Dunn’s ace and solid passing, the Tigers were able to jump out an opening set lead, 25-18.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 5-0 run to begin the second frame and never looked back. Despite blocks from Moore, Dreves and Bella Bell, Samford’s offense continued to find success.
Auburn clawed with one, 17-16, but another run from Samford proved too much for the Tigers to overcome, tying the match at one set apiece.
Brent Crouch’s defense started to show signs of life in the third set. Three early blocks set the tone and midway through the frame, the Bulldogs were hitting just .067.
Strong serving was the name of the game for Auburn to close out set No. 3. Chelsey McCurdy, Fallan Lanham and Kalei Edson all put down aces. Meanwhile, Dreves moved up to 11 kills on over .350 hitting with a team-leading seven digs.
Dreves would finish her evening with team highs in kills (15) and digs (16) for the third double-double of her young career.
All-SEC outside hitter Madison Scheer rose to the occasion in set four. With McCurdy and Co. consistently forcing the Bulldogs out of system, Scheer and the rest of the Tiger hitters converted first-ball kills, free balls and multiple transition opportunities.
The Eureka, Missouri product swung for six kills on .357 in the fourth set alone. She would finish with 13 kills on the evening.
Defensively, McCurdy, Moore, Bell and Zimmerman all delivered rejections as Dreves and Dacosta ran down 10 digs combined. It all added up to a .022 hitting percentage for Samford and more than enough for Auburn to start its weekend off with a win.
Match Notes…
>> Auburn held Samford to .167 hitting, marking the eighth time the Tigers have held an opponent below .200 in a match this season
>> The Tigers are 8-0 this year when holding opponents below .200 and 22-2 over the past two seasons when accomplishing the feat
>> Offensively, Auburn hit .257 for the match, clearing the .200 mark for the seventh time this year
>> The Tigers are 7-0 this year when hitting north of .200 and 23-3 when doing so over the past two seasons
>> Auburn’s eight aces were a season-high
>> Lauren Dreves collected her third double-double with 15 kills and 16 digs
>> Dreves’ 15 kills were a career-high
>> Madison Scheer (15 kills) reached double digits for the sixth match this season
>> Scheer’s six digs tied her career-best
>> Alexis Dacosta (10 digs) reach double digits for the sixth time in 2024
What Crouch had to say…
“I was happy with the way we started the match off. We came out with great energy and executed in the way that I wanted to see. I needed to challenge them after that second set a little bit and again, they responded. Even though I was disappointed in how that second set went, I’m incredibly encouraged in how the team responded to that challenge and I think that’s a very good sign moving forward.”