AUBURN, Ala. – Junior Madison Scheer led an impressive effort with a team-high 14 kills in front of a record crowd of 3,940 inside Neville Arena. In the end, it wasn’t enough as Auburn (14-10, 4-9) fell to No. 14 Texas (14-6, 9-3) in three sets, 3-0 (25-11, 25-21, 25-15).
Early and often, Scheer proved why she was a preseason all-SEC selection. The Eureka, Missouri product powered down four kills.
Meanwhile, Alexis Dacosta equaled Scheer’s effort in the back row. The Tigers’ junior libero ran down four digs as did starting setter Kalei Edson.
The Longhorns’ offense proved too much to handle in the opening frame, though, hitting north of .300 and taking the first set and the lead.
Head coach Brent Crouch’s squad started to find a rhythm in the second set. Sturdy passing led to Auburn’s highest offensive efficiency of the night at .270.
Scheer was the main beneficiary, tallying five more kills on .316 hitting during set No. 2 alone. She would finish with a team-high 14 kills.
The Orange and Blue drew as close as two late in the set, 22-20. One final push from Texas, however, and the visitors were in the driving seat at two sets to none.
Once more, Crouch’s crew battled for large parts of the third set. Bella Bella ended her evening with five kills and freshman Lauren Dreves secured four of her own from both the outside and back row.
Auburn’s block also picked up the pace. Chelsey McCurdy led the way on the front row with five total blocks, including one solo effort. Bel Zimmerman added three as well.
Still, it was the Longhorns who managed late scoring runs to take the set and the match, 3-0.
MATCH NOTES
- The 3,940 fans in attendance set a new program record, surpassing the 3,082 mark on Sept. 29, 2024 against Alabama
- Madison Scheer (14 kills) reached double digits for the 20th time this season
- Fallan Lanham’s 10 digs were the most for the senior since grabbing 13 on opening day against North Alabama
- Bel Zimmerman notched her first ace of the season
WHAT CROUCH HAD TO SAY
Opening Statement…
“First, I just want to say thank you to the Auburn community. We set another attendance record today and it’s only going to go up from here. I can’t tell you how much it means to me and to our players. Thank you.
“I thought there were a ton of positives out there despite the final score. It was easily our best passing match of the season. Offensively, we saw a lot of good moments in the back row and on the slide. We’ll take a look as a staff in closer detail but again, there weren’t many reasons to hang our heads. Texas is an incredibly good team with probably the best player in the country in Madisen Skinner.”