STATESBORO, Ga. — The LSU volleyball team opened up the 2005 season with a pair of victories at the Georgia Southern Invitational, defeating the host Eagles, 26-30, 30-21, 30-14, 30-21, before sweeping Jacksonville University, 30-19, 30-22, 30-18, on Friday at Hanner Fieldhouse.
With the wins the Tigers improved to 2-0 on the season and will close out the tournament on Saturday with a single match against Campbell University at 1 p.m. (CST). Georgia Southern dropped to 0-1 on the year, while the Dolphins evened their record at 1-1.
“I thought this was a really positive start for our season,” said LSU head coach Fran Flory. “I think we showed some real resiliency. We did some positive things. We earned the majority of our points and did not rely on the other team to give us our points. We capitalized on our opportunities.
Senior Jelena Mijatovic led the first match with her first double-double of the season. She posted a match-best 20 kills on a .293 hitting percentage, while tying for the match high with 16 digs. After being ranked fourth in the nation last season in service aces, she kicked off the season with a bang, knocking down seven in the four-game match, part of the 11 by the Tigers.
Junior Lauren Leaumont also posted a double-double for LSU, recording 16 kills on a .375 hitting percentage and tying Mijatovic with 16 digs. Senior Ivana Kuzmic led the match with five blocks, including a pair of block solos, while recording nine kills. Redshirt freshman Heather Fierce, in her first collegiate action, recorded a match-best 52 assists.
“I thought Jelena did a tremendous job for us today,” said Flory. “I also think that Heather did a nice job in her first action as a freshman.”
Iulia Porumbescu led Georgia Southern with 14 kills and 14 digs. Staci Anderson also posted double-figures in digs with 12 for the Eagles, while Jennifer Schenk and Christie Mitchell led GSU with three blocks each.
Against Jacksonville, Mijatovic led the match with 19 kills, while also recording three aces and three digs. Melody Clark posted 10 kills, as Leaumont led the match with 11 digs followed by Kassi Mikulik with 10. Kuzmic led the match once again with four blocks, while also posting a .643 hitting percentage with nine kills.
Jacksonville was led by Eva Stoilova with seven kills and seven digs, while Alyssa Fowles also recorded seven digs. Danielle Neville led the Dolphins with three blocks.
In the first game against Georgia Southern, the teams were evenly matched. LSU took a 5-2 lead before GSU came back to tie it up at seven all. There were 13 more ties before the Eagles took the lead for good, 25-26. Georgia Southern went on to take the game, 30-26.
Despite out killing the Eagles, 11-19, LSU recorded 11 errors to five for GSU and committed six service errors to three for Georgia Southern, which made the difference in the game.
After being tied at five all to start the second game, the Tigers opened it up on the Eagles, stretching out a five-point lead. Midway through the game, LSU took control and cruised to the finish, evening the match at one game each, 30-21.
The Tigers recorded 15 kills with only five errors in game two for a .312 percentage, while Georgia Southern hit .133. LSU also benefited from five service aces, including four by Mijatovic.
In the third game, the Tigers fell behind 4-1 to open play before going on a 7-0 run to take the lead for good, 8-4. The Eagles never got within three the remainder of the game as LSU cruised to a 30-14 win.
Statistically, the Tigers again picked up the pace as LSU recorded 18 kills with only four errors for a .400 percentage. In addition, the Tigers blocked back five balls, after recording only two in the first two games.
LSU earned its first win of the season by taking the fourth game. With the Tigers leading 10-8, LSU went on a 6-2 run to break open a six-point lead, which was extended to an 11-point lead, 24-13. After bringing in a pair of freshmen, Kyna Washington and Marina Skender, for their first collegiate action, Georgia Southern cut the lead to seven, but got no closer as the Tigers took the game and match, 30-21.
LSU ended on a high note, posting a .394 hitting percentage with 17 kills in the fourth game. The Tigers also recorded three blocks as Skender ended the game on her first career service ace.
In the second match, LSU jumped out to the 1-0 lead with a win in the first game. The Tigers pulled ahead 4-1 and never looked back. LSU led by as many as eight, 13-5, midway through, before Jacksonville fought back to 15-10. Leading 20-15, the Tigers went on a 10-4 run to close out the game, 30-19.
Posting 25 kills with only five errors, LSU hit .541 in the first game. Mijatovic led the way with six kills, while Clark recorded four and a trio of Tigers had three each. LSU also played defense, out digging the Dolphins, 14-5, in the game.
In game two, Jacksonville kept the score close, as the Tigers led by only two points, 13-11, midway through the game. LSU gradually stretched the lead to four points, 21-18 before the Tigers exploded for a five-point burst to pull ahead by eight points. LSU went on to take the game 30-22.
The Tigers took the match with a convincing win in the third game. After leading by one, 11-10, LSU went on a six-point run to stretch the lead to 17-10. Leading 21-16, the Tigers scored six more straight to hold a 10-point lead. LSU won the game and the match, 30-19.
LSU def. Georgia Southern, 26-30, 30-21, 30-14, 30-21
LSU (1-0) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Jelena Mijatovic 20-7-2; Lauren Leaumont 16-0-2; Ivana Kuzmic 9-0-5; Melody Clark 6-1-2; Vanessa Freeman 5-0-2; Heather Fierce 4-0-0; Kyna Washington 1-0-0; Marina Skender 0-1-0; Michelle Hensgens 0-0-0; Kassi Mikulik 0-2-0; Totals 61-11-10.0. (Assists) – Heather Fierce 52. (Dig leaders) – Lauren Leaumont 16; Jelena Mijatovic 16; Kassi Mikulik 6; Heather Fierce 5; Michelle Hensgens 5
Georgia Southern (0-1) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Iulia Porumbescu 14-0-1; Bailey Coleman 7-1-2; Jennifer Schenk 4-2-3; Jennifer Charmes 3-0-3; Christie Mitchell 3-0-3; Natalia Galantini 2-1-0; Kursten Carr 0-0-0; Gorana 5-0-0; Staci Anderson 0-0-0; Mae Chabra 0-0-0; Amanda Suter 1-0-0; Totals 38-4-7.0. (Assists) – Natalia Galantini 19; Mae Chabra 12. (Dig leaders) – Iulia Porumbescu 14; Staci Anderson 12; Bailey Coleman 8; Natalie Galantini 5
LSU def. Jacksonville, 30-19, 30-22, 30-18
LSU (2-0) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Jelena Mijatovic 19-3-0; Melody Clark 10-1-0; Ivana Kuzmic 9-0-4; Lauren Leaumont 7-0-11; Vanessa Freeman 3-0-0; Heather Fierce 1-3-0; Kyna Washington 4-0-2; Marina Skender 8-0-2; Michelle Hensgens 0-4-0; Kassi Mikulik 0-0-0; Totals 61-7-5.0. (Assists) – Heather Fierce 51. (Dig leaders) – Lauren Leaumont 11; Kassi Mikulik 10; Heather Fierce 7; Melody Clark 5
Jacksonville (1-1) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Eva Stoilova 7-0-1; Joanna Silva 5-0-0; Erin Donivan 4-1-0; Danielle Neville 2-0-3; Lindsay Ward 2-0-0; Katie Hendrain 0-0-0; Laura Goettsch 7-2-0; Petya Borisova 0-0-0; Alyssa Fowles 0-0-0; Totals 28-3-3.0. (Assists) – Erin Donivan 17. (Dig leaders) – Eva Stoilova 7; Alyssa Fowles 7; Joanna Silva 5; Petya Borisova 4