TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The LSU volleyball team overtook the Southeastern Conference Western Division lead from Ole Miss with a win over Mississippi State on Friday, and the Tigers will look to increase that lead on Sunday as they travel to Tuscaloosa to play Alabama in The CAVE at 1:30 p.m.
The Tigers (10-6, 5-4 SEC) already have defeated their four other division rivals and will look for a sweep in the first rematch of divisional foes against Alabama (10-7, 3-5 SEC), which was swept by Georgia on Friday.
“Alabama is a very difficult place to play, and we know they’re a very talented team,” LSU head coach Fran Flory said. “Every match between LSU and Alabama seems to be a very intense battle. It’s nice that we’ve taken the lead in the West, but we’re only halfway through the season and have a lot of matches ahead of us. Alabama is a young team that we know will continue to improve through the second half of the season.”
The Crimson Tide has shown a balanced offense this season. They swept matches last weekend against Arkansas and Ole Miss with contributions from all over the court. Four players posted nine or more kills against Arkansas, and three Tide players notched double-doubles against the Rebels. Alabama’s Brooks Webster leads the SEC in kills per set with 3.98.
LSU continues to experiment with new offenses following season-ending injuries to key athletes, and alternating between Sam Dabbs in a 5-1 and Dabbs and Brittney Johnson in a 6-2 has worked well in the last two matches for the Tigers. Johnson has also added a new dimension offensively, posting better than a .500 clip in the both of those appearances.
Both liberos are also top five in the SEC. LSU’s Elena Martinez ranks second in the league with 4.43 digs per set while Alabama’s Amy Pauly is fifth with a 4.13 average.
The series between these two teams has been close, as LSU leads by just three wins at 24-21. The Tigers swept the 2007 series, but the teams exchanged home wins the three previous years.
This is the last of a four-match road trip for the Tigers, who will return home next weekend to take on SEC East foes Florida and South Carolina.