LEXINGTON, Ky. — The road may have finally caught up to the Tigers as the LSU volleyball team dropped its second consecutive match, falling 30-22, 22-30, 30-27, 30-24, to Kentucky on Sunday afternoon at Memorial Coliseum.
Having played 17 consecutive road match, traveled almost 10,000 miles and spent 26 of the previous 46 days away from Baton Rouge, the Tigers (13-4, 3-3 Southeastern Conference) could not overcome the up-an-coming Wildcats (11-5, 4-2 SEC). Kentucky has now knocked off the top three teams in the SEC West this season.
“I think we played hard, but not hard enough to finish,” said LSU head coach Fran Flory. “It looked like we just ran out of gas on the long rallies. We didn’t have that finishing punch that we have had in the past.”
As a team, the pair were evenly match in kills and blocks, with Kentucky leading the Tigers, 57-54, in kills and LSU besting the Wildcats, 12-10, in blocks. The Tigers, however, hit .110 as a team, while Kentucky did slightly better at .172. In addition, the Wildcats recorded six service aces, compared to five for LSU. The pair ended the match tied in digs.
“I think Kentucky did a good job of keeping the ball in play,” said Flory. “The factors that we thought needed to be a positive for us to win, serving and blocking, ended up being a positive for Kentucky. They served very well and our blocking was not the force that we needed it to be.”
A trio of Tigers each posted 10 kills to lead LSU in the match. Lauren Leaumont came on in the second game and recorded 10 kills with 11 digs for her second double-double of the season. Ivana Kuzmic also posted 10 kills with a team-best seven blocks, including two solo.
Marina Skender recorded 10 kills with 13 digs for her first career double-double. Kassi Mikulik tied with Skender for the team lead with 13 digs, while Daniela Romero also recorded a double-double with a team-best 38 assists and 11 digs.
Amy Kaplan led the match with 17 kills for Kentucky, followed by Danielle Wallace and Ashlee Fisher with 12 each. Queen Nzenwa led the Wildcats with seven blocks. Jenni Casper led the match with 21 digs, followed by Alisa Pierce with 12 and Julie Gagnon with 11.
In the first game, the pair traded points early on. With the score tied at seven, LSU scored four of the next five points to pull to an 11-8 advantage with three kills by Mijatovic. Kentucky came back to even it up at 12 all. Tied at 17, the Wildcats took the lead for good on a kill. Kentucky went on to take game on, 30-22.
The Tigers changed their offense in the second game with great results. After falling behind 3-1, LSU scored four straight points to take the 5-3 lead. The Tigers also found their block, recording seven blocks in the second game after none in the first. LSU led by as many as 10 points on its way to a 30-22 win.
In game four, the Tigers jumped out to a 4-1 lead before Kentucky came back to tie it up at 10. The pair traded points until LSU stretched out three-point lead, 20-17. The Wildcats came back to tie it at 22 all before taking the lead, 23-22 on a kill. Kentucky went on to take the third game, 30-27.
LSU fell behind early in the fourth game, 12-6, and could never recover. The Tigers trailed by as many as seven, 17-10, and again 19-12. LSU got back to within two, 23-21, but a questionable call on what was ruled an ace by Kentucky at 25-21 sent the Wildcats on a 5-3 run to close out the game and the match, 30-24.
LSU will finally play at home next weekend as the Tigers host Mississippi State and Ole Miss. LSU will face the Bulldogs on Friday at 6 p.m. as part of “Party of the PMAC”, which is fan day for the men’s and women’s basketball teams. Admission to the match is free and there will be a tailgate party with a band and food from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. The Tigers will then close out the weekend against the Rebels on Sunday at 1:30 p.m.
Kentucky def. LSU, 30-22, 22-30, 30-27, 30-24
LSU (13-4, 3-3 SEC) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Ivana Kuzmic 10-0-7; Marina Skender 10-1-1; Jelena Mijatovic 9-0-5; Melody Clark 9-0-5; Kyna Washington 4-0-0; Heather Fierce 0-0-0; Lauren Leaumont 10-1-1; Vanessa Freeman 1-0-0; Michelle Hensgens 0-0-0; Kassi Mikulik 0-2-0; Daniela Romero 1-1-2; Totals 54-5-12.0. (Assists) – Daniela Romero 38. (Dig leaders) – Kassi Mikulik 13, Marina Skender 13, Lauren Leaumont 11, Daniela Romero 11.
Kentucky (11-5, 4-2 SEC) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Amy Kaplan 17-0-2; Danielle Wallace 12-0-2; Melissa Popp 6-2-0; Leigh Marcum 5-2-4; Queen Nzenwa 5-0-7; Julie Gagnon 0-0-0; Ashlee Fisher 12-0-3; Jenni Casper 0-0-0; Alisa Pierce 0-2-0; Totals 57-6-10.0. (Assists) – Leigh Marcum 38. (Dig leaders) – Jenni Casper 21, Alisa Pierce 12, Julie Gagnon 11.