CHICAGO — Auburn volleyball finished its trip to Chicago with a 3-1 win over DePaul. The Blue Demons took the first set over the Tigers before the Auburn offense went on to hit .415 through the final three sets. Greer Chambless set a career high with 17 kills. Belle Patrick and Anastasija Ivkovic each logged 12 kills. Emily Keiran led the Auburn defensive effort with 17 digs and a perfect reception percentage.
DePaul jumped out to a 5-2 lead, taking advantage of multiple Tiger attack errors. Auburn clawed back, eventually taking a 15-13 lead in the set after a five-point run with multiple aces by Grace Havlicek. The Blue Demons retook their lead with a six-point run, scoring most of the points off Auburn errors. Auburn made a late surge at the end of the set, down five, pulling within one point, but DePaul put an end to the Tiger run just in time to clinch a 25-23 set victory. Keiran led the Tigers with six digs in the set.
A five-point Auburn run led by Chambless and a Reese Shugart ace put the Tigers up 8-5 early in the set. Shugart picked up four kills in the second frame, scoring four points in a row for Auburn. DePaul battled back to pull within one point at 19-18 and 21-20, but Ivkovic responded with back-to-back kills before a DePaul attack error gave Auburn the 25-20 win. Chambless had four errorless kills on nine attacks; Shugart led the team with five kills in the set.
Five Chambless kills highlighted a 9-1 run for the Tigers, putting Auburn up 15-6 into the media timeout. Patrick, Ivkovic, and Kate Mansfield all combined on a four-point Auburn run to force DePaul to call a timeout at 20-9. Patrick led the final charge of the set for Auburn, picking up a kill and an ace before the Tigers won the set, 25-15. Mansfield swung three-for-three in the set with a block.
DePaul opened set four with a small lead, before a six-point run by Auburn put the Tigers ahead for good; Patrick and Chambless combined for four kills in the run. The Tigers ended the set on a 9-2 run with production from Chambless, Patrick, Mansfield, and McAmis. Patrick logged nine errorless kills in the final two sets along with three aces.
NOTABLES
- Chambless recorded a career-high 17 kills on a career-high 41 attacks.
- Keiran tied her career high with 17 digs, also logging a career-high nine assists.
- Ivkovic recorded a career-high 12 kills on a career-high 27 attacks. Ivkovic’s three digs were a season high.
- Macy McAmis’s 10 digs were a career high.
- Shugart made her second-career appearance, recording five kills on 10 attacks. Shugart’s two digs, block, and ace were all career highs.
- Shanelle Puetz’s 17 assists and five digs are both season highs.
- Havlicek’s three aces tied a season high.
TIGER STANDOUTS
- Chambless logged a career-high 17 kills, hitting .268 on 41 attacks. Chambless also recorded a solo block.
- Keiran tied her season high with 17 digs. Keiran also had nine assists and was seven-for-seven on receptions.
- Ivkovic’s 12 kills were a career high. She hit .333 on 27 attacks with three digs and three blocks.
- Patrick also recorded 12 kills, hitting .200 on 35 attacks. Patrick tallied three aces, seven digs, and a pair of blocks.
- McAmis logged a career-high 10 digs and was nine-for-nine on receptions.
- Carson Eickenloff and Puetz had 20 and 17 assists, respectively.
- Shugart took advantage of her playing time early in the match, recording five kills on 10 attempts, hitting .400. Shugart logged two digs, an ace, and a block while going 13-for-13 on receptions.
- Havlicek led Auburn with five blocks and three aces.
HEAD COACH BRENT CROUCH
- “The opening set was one of our worst offensively, but we were able to make some major adjustments and ended up with some of the better sets of the season after that. Our freshmen on the back row were outstanding in the passing game. I’ll be happy to be back in Auburn in front of our home fans at Neville for the first time this season on Thursday.
UP NEXT
- Auburn volleyball debuts at home at the Alabama Showdown. Thursday’s home opener against UAB is set for 6 p.m. The Tigers will also host Samford and South Alabama on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
—War Eagle—