ORLANDO — The 15th-ranked LSU volleyball team completed the SEC/Big East Challenge without dropping a game, sweeping Marquette, 30-22, 31-29, 30-16, on Saturday afternoon at the Champions Sports Complex.
With the win, the Tigers improved to 26-5 on the season, tying the 1992 team for the most wins since 1991’s NCAA Final Four team. The Golden Eagles fell to 16-14 on the year and 0-2 in the tournament. LSU now awaits an NCAA postseason big on Sunday afternoon.
“What a great weekend,” said LSU head coach Fran Flory. “We played very well throughout every game of every match. Our kids played with great heart and great intensity. They were very efficient and I’m really proud of our effort against two very good teams.”
As a team, the Tigers hit an amazing .341 for the match, marking back-to-back matches hitting over .300 after hitting .371 against St. John’s on Friday. In addition, LSU posted a .556 hitting mark in the third game, as the Tigers committed only two errors with 22 kills.
For the match, LSU recorded 58 kills to only 16 errors with 123 attempts. In addition, the Tigers out blocked Marquette, 11-3, and posted four service aces, while holding the Golden Eagles without one. Marquette managed to hit only .179 for the match, recording 39 kills with 19 errors and 112 attempts. Only once in the match did the Red Storm hit over .200.
Senior Kassi Mikulik finished with 10 digs, her 31st double-figure dig mark of the season, and broke the LSU single-season digs record. The Flatonia, Texas, native now has 525 digs, breaking the mark of 516 held by Luciana Reis in 1993.
Senior Daniela Romero also became just the eighth player in LSU history to record 1,000 career digs with her first of nine digs in the match. In addition, she finished with 50 assists, her 13th 50-assist match of the season, moving her into fourth in single-season assists in school history.
Sophomore Marina Skender led the match with 15 kills, followed by senior Melody Clark with 11. In addition, Clark hit .360, while junior Vanessa Freeman posted a .462 hitting percentage with eight kills. Freshman Lauren DeGirolamo led the match with nine blocks, followed by Freeman with four.
Kimberley Todd led Marquette with 13 kills, the only Golden Eagle player in double-figures. Lauren Pierce led Marquette with 10 digs, while Jenn Brown and Todd tied for a team high with two blocks.
In the first game, the Tigers jumped out to a 7-4 lead early on. LSU extended its lead to seven, 17-10, before the Golden Eagles started a comeback that found them within four, 24-20. With the Tigers leading 26-22, LSU scored the final four points to take game one, 30-22.
The Tigers fell behind in the second game and trailed most of the way. Marquette led by as many as six midway through the game, 14-8, but LSU would not be denied. The Tigers clawed back to within two, 17-15, but could not get over the hump as the Golden Eagles extended the lead out to six once again, 23-17.
At that point, LSU turned it on, scoring six straight to tie it up at 23 all. The Tigers took their first lead since 2-1 at 25-24. Marquette tied it up at 25 and there would be three more tied scores before LSU held its first game point, 29-28. A kill by the Golden Eagles tied it up again, but back-to-back kills by the Tigers sent LSU into the locker room with the two-game advantage, 31-29.
The Tigers came out of the break and completely dominated Marquette in the third game. With LSU trailing, 8-7, the Tigers went on an 8-1 run to take the lead for good. LSU used a run of 5-0 run and a 4-0 run to get it to 25-16. The Tigers then scored the final five points of the game to win the match, 30-16.
The NCAA Tournament selection show will be broadcast live on ESPNews on Sunday between 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The Tigers will gather to watch the selection show at Walk-On’s Bistreaux and Bar. The Tigers are looking for back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since making four straight from 1989 to 1992.
No. 15 LSU def. Marquette, 30-22, 31-29, 30-16
No. 15 LSU (26-5) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Marina Skender 15-0-2; Melody Clark 11-0-2; Vanessa Freeman 8-0-4; Lauren DeGirolamo 8-0-9; Kyna Washington 8-0-2; Daniela Romero 4-3-1; Lauren Leaumont 2-0-0; Elena Martinez 0-0-0; Michelle Hensgens 0-1-0; Kassi Mikulik 1-0-0; Brittnee Cooper 1-0-2; Totals 58-4-11.0. (Assists) – Daniela Romero 50. (Dig leaders) – Kassi Mikulik 10.
Marquette (16-15) (Kills-aces-blocks) – Kimberley Todd 13-0-2; Jamie Mueller 7-0-0; Jenn Brown 6-0-2; Monica Renfrow 3-0-1; Nicole Wallace 2-0-1; Hailey Viola 0-0-0; Leslie Bielski 7-0-0; Terri Angst 0-0-0; Katie Vancura 1-0-0; Lauren Pierce 0-0-0; Caryn Mastandrea 0-0-0; Totals 39-0-3.0. (Assists) – Monica Renfrow 33. (Dig leaders) – Lauren Pierce 10.