BATON ROUGE — The LSU volleyball team will look to get back to its winning ways at home this weekend as the Tigers face Alabama at 7 p.m. on Friday in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center before taking on Mississippi State at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.
The match against the Crimson Tide has been designated as “Beat Bama” night, and the first 500 fans will receive “Beat Bama” banners.
LSU (12-9, 7-7 SEC) dropped two matches on the road last weekend against No. 19 Kentucky and Tennessee, but the Tigers maintained a half-match lead over Ole Miss in the SEC West. Alabama (12-10, 5-8) enters the match against the Tigers having won two straight as the Crimson Tide beat Mississippi State and Auburn on the road last week.
“Alabama is a very athletic and talented team, and they are young like us,” LSU head coach Fran Flory said. “Just as we have continued to improve throughout the year, they have continued to improve with each match.”
Alabama is led offensively by junior Brooks Webster who leads the conference in kills per set with an average of 3.92. Sophomore Mary Catherine Aune leads the league in service aces per set as she holds a 0.54 average. As a team Alabama leads the SEC in service aces per set with an average of 1.73. Defensively the Tide is led by senior libero Amy Pauly who has collected 322 digs on the season for an average of 4.03 digs per set, a mark that ranks fifth in the league.
LSU is paced offensively by senior Kyna Washington and junior Brittnee Cooper as both Tigers have pounded out more than 220 kills this season. Freshman Michele Williams has stepped up as she has seen more action and is now third on the team in kills with 111. Williams also leads the team in service aces per set with 0.40, an average that ranks fourth in the conference.
Defensively, Cooper leads the Tigers’ front line as she has blocked 99 attempts this season, an average of 1.27 blocks per set which ranks first in the SEC. Senior libero Elena Martinez also paces LSU’s defense as she is tied for first in the conference in digs per set with a 4.68 average. Martinez has accumulated 1,263 digs in her career and has pushed her way up to fourth on LSU’s all-time career digs list.
The all-time series has been back and forth with LSU holding a 25-21 advantage after taking down the Crimson Tide in five sets in Tuscaloosa on Oct. 19. It was the third-straight match between the two rivals that went to five sets as LSU captured both contests against the Tide in 2007.
“Our match this year at their place was a war that we fortunately were able to win,” Flory said. “All of our matches are tough with Alabama, and we have a lot of respect for them as a program and team. We know they are going to come out and play well, and we better be prepared. We will have to do a great job of staying composed offensively to match the outstanding defense they have been playing.”
Kids are invited to join the fun in the Kid Zone before the match as LSU face tattoos will be available.
After battling the Tide, LSU will welcome Mississippi State to the PMAC on Sunday for a 1:30 p.m. contest.