AUBURN, Ala. — The 13th-ranked LSU volleyball team earned a three-game sweep of Auburn, 30-24, 30-23, 30-24, in Southeastern Conference play on Friday night at the Student Activities Center to rebound from their first league loss of the season last weekend.
With the win, the purple and gold improve to 16-2 overall and 8-1 in conference play, remaining in a tie with Florida atop the SEC overall standings. AU dropped to 11-9 on the season and 3-6 in the league. LSU will now travel to take on nationally ranked Florida. The Fighting Tigers will face the eighth-ranked Gators on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. (CT).
“I’m very proud of this team,” said LSU head coach Fran Flory. “Tonight, they played very hard against a very feisty Auburn team. Auburn out dug us and equaled us in blocks which is unusual. Their game plan was very solid against us and they made us succeed in areas we’re not real comfortable in succeeding. They made us rely on some areas that we have not been able to rely on and been successful in prior matches.
“I’m really proud of the step forward that we took. We fought hard and we made the plays when we needed to make them. We overcame errors on our side and we maintained a very balanced attitude. I think this was a great match for us.”
As a team, LSU out killed Auburn, 47-37, while posting a .267 hitting percentage to only a .113 mark for Auburn. AU out dug the purple and gold, 44-38, while the pair tied with five blocks each. LSU also finished with six service aces, compared to two for Auburn, but the purple and gold also committed 12 service errors for the match.
Sophomore Marina Skender led a trio of LSU players in double-figures with kills, followed by sophomore Kyna Washington and freshman Lauren DeGirolamo. DeGirolamo led the match in blocks with four, including one solo.
Senior Kassi Mikulik led the purple and gold with 11 digs, while senior Daniela Romero recorded 10 digs along with 32 assists. Skender led the match with a trio of service aces, keeping her atop the league standings for the season in aces per game, while Romero posted a pair of aces.
Rachel Shanks and Jessica Glover each led Auburn with 11 kills, while Whitney Jacob led the match with 12 digs. Jelena Sekulic also posted in double figures with digs with 10. Julie Bosler led AU with three blocks.
In the first game, LSU took a 6-4 lead before Auburn came back to tie it up at six all. AU then went ahead, 9-7, before a 9-1 run by the purple and gold sent LSU up, 16-10. Auburn got as close as two, 22-20, but could get no closer as the Fighting Tigers pulled away in the end for the game one win, 30-24.
For the game, LSU posted 14 kills with a .250 hitting percentage. The purple and gold also recorded a pair of blocks with 12 digs and a pair of service aces. Auburn out killed LSU with 16 kills, while only hitting at a .179 clip. In addition, AU posted a pair of blocks with 14 digs and an ace.
LSU fell behind early in the second game, 7-3, before battling back to tie it up at eight all. LSU took the lead for good at 12-11. With the purple and gold leading 19-18, LSU went on a 10-2 run to pull out to a 29-20 lead. Auburn held off game point three times before a kill by Skender sent the Fighting Tigers into the locker room with the two-game advantage, 30-23.
In game two, LSU came out and posted 17 kills with a .275 hitting percentage. Conversely, Auburn dropped to just 10 kills with a .000 hitting percentage. AU remained ahead in digs, posting 12 compared to 11 for the purple and gold.
After seven ties in the third game, LSU took the lead at 8-7 and held a 12-8 lead before Auburn came back to tie it up at 12 all. After two more tied scores, the purple and gold took the lead for good at 15-14 and never trailed. With the match tied at 17 all, LSU went on a 5-0 run, highlighted by the trio of aces by Skender, to pull ahead, 22-17. LSU went on to hold match point, 29-21, before Auburn fought off it off three times. A kill by DeGirolamo sealed the match, 30-24.
LSU will next be at home next Friday for a rematch with Kentucky at 7 p.m. before facing off once again with nationally ranked Tennessee next Sunday at 3:30 p.m. That match will be televised on SEC-TV in Baton Rouge on Fox Sports Southwest, cable channel 38, as LSU celebrates Mike the Tiger’s Birthday.
No. 13 LSU def. Auburn, 30-24, 30-23, 30-24
No. 13 LSU (16-2, 8-1 SEC) (Kills-aces-blocks) ? Marina Skender 14-3-2; Lauren DeGirolamo 12-0-4; Kyna Washington 12-1-0; Melody Clark 3-0-1; Brittnee Cooper 3-0-2; Daniela Romero 3-2-0; Lauren Leaumont 0-0-0; Michelle Hensgens 0-0-0; Kassi Mikulik 0-0-0; Totals 47-6-5.0. (Assists) – Daniela Romero 37. (Dig leaders) – Kassi Mikulik 11, Daniela Romero 10.
Auburn (11-7, 3-6 SEC) (Kills-aces-blocks) ? Jessica Glover 11-0-1; Rachel Shanks 11-0-2; Whitney Jacob 6-1-2; Jelena Sekulic 4-0-0; Joanna Pappas 4-0-1; Julie Bosler 1-0-3; Whitney Hobbs 0-1-0; Totals 37-2-5.0. (Assists) ? Joanna Pappas 30. (Dig leaders) ? Whitney Jacob 12, Jelena Sekulic 10.