Game 2: LSU def. Tulane, 3-0
BATON ROUGE — Marina Skender and Brittnee Cooper combined for 23 kills on a .477 hitting percentage as the LSU volleyball team completed a perfect Saturday with a solid 3-0 sweep of Tulane [25-22, 25-16, 25-21] to conclude the Tiger Classic.
Sam Dabbs distributed 38 assists and set the Tigers (4-2) to a season-best .375 hitting percentage. She also added seven digs and four kills. Madie Jones matched a career-best with eight kills on a scorching .636 hitting percentage, while Sam Delahoussaye reeled in seven digs.
“I’m really excited about our offensive showing,” head coach Fran Flory said. “We talked about trying to manufacture more kills offensively, not give away errors and we’ve been fairly efficient. To have 47 kills in a three-set match is a nice improvement. We used people more efficiently and tried to create more opportunities in different zones for our hitters.”
Behind 21-18 in the first set, LSU charged back with three straight points highlighted by a Cooper kill and block. The two teams traded service errors before Skender and Michele Williams struck for kills coupled with a Williams and Lauren DeGirolamo block for the 25-22 win.
The Tigers carried that momentum into set two and led wire-to-wire in a 25-16 romp. LSU also sided out at an impressive 81 percent clip as Skender posted five kills in her second consecutive frame. Cooper and Jones also tacked on four kills apiece.
After 11 ties and six lead changes in the third set, LSU strung together four consecutive points to turn a 17-16 deficit into a 20-17 lead. The mini-spurt was capped by a DeGirolamo service ace. The Green Wave got within one point on three separate occasions. At 22-21, the Tigers received spikes from Jones and Cooper followed by a Dabbs service to secure the sweep.
LSU finishes the preseason tournament slate next weekend at the AllState Sugar Bowl Classic. The Tigers square off against Tulane, Long Beach State and New Orleans at Fogleman Arena on the Tulane campus.
“All of our tournaments are designed to get us the right type of competition prior to conference play,” Flory said. “You face Stanford and Nebraska, two Final Four participants from last season. That wasn’t necessarily designed, but it was great that we could have that kind of competition early. Long Beach is a great team and Tulane along with New Orleans is going to want a piece of us.”
All-Tournament Team
Sydney Anderson (Nebraska ? MVP)
Kayla Banwarth (Nebraska ? Defensive MVP)
Tara Mueller (Nebraska)
Brittnee Cooper (LSU)
Sam Dabbs (LSU)
Marina Skender (LSU)
Visnja Djurdjevic (Tulane)
Kendra Hall (ULL)
LSU HEAD COACH FRAN FLORY
Opening statement…
I’m really excited about our offensive showing. We talked about trying to manufacture more kills offensively and not give away errors and we’ve been fairly efficient, but we haven’t been putting the ball on the floor. To have 47 kills in a three-set match is a nice improvement. I think we used people more efficiently; we tried to create more opportunities in different zones for hitters and I think it was effective.
On making adjustments to Tulane’s rotation…
They tried to match up their big girl on Britnee Cooper, so we rotated after game one, and that opened up more possibilities. Michele Williams was on her at that point, but she’s a little faster and can move a little more fluidly. That was a better matchup for us and thankfully we were able to maintain that matchup through the rest of the match.
On this season’s non-conference schedule…
All of our tournaments this fall are designed to get us the right type of competition prior to conference play. You face Stanford and Nebraska, two Final Four participants… that wasn’t necessarily designed, but it was great that we could have those matchups and that kind of competition early. Long Beach is a great team and Tulane is going to want a piece of us. They’re a young team, they’re still putting things together, and this was their first weekend of competition. The improvement we made from our first weekend to our second weekend they’re going to make next weekend. They’re going to be a much-improved team and it’s going to be a tough tournament.
On setter Sam Dabbs‘ performance tonight…
Samantha Dabbs is a great all-around player. She just hasn’t always played with the confidence level in the other aspects of the game that she does offensively in terms of setting. She’s a great offensive weapon and we try to encourage her to dump more balls and be more creative to score on her own. We want her to use those at the right time and I don’t think we’ve managed to get that exactly right yet. Tonight was a step closer. She’s worked really hard on her defense and I’m proud of her effort. She’s just somebody who always seems to come through when we need the play.
Game 1: LSU def. UL-Lafayette, 3-0
BATON ROUGE — Brittnee Cooper continued her hot streak by ripping 13 kills on a scorching .632 hitting percentage to go along with eight blocks as the LSU volleyball team swept Louisiana-Lafayette [25-15, 25-14, 25-23] Saturday to open day two of the Tiger Classic at the Maravich Center.
LSU’s (3-2) defense set the tone with nine blocks and held ULL (3-5) to a paltry .072 hitting percentage. Angela Bensend and Tania Schatow slapped seven kills apiece, while Lauren DeGirolamo connected on six of her nine swings and added seven digs.
Brittney Johnson and Sam Dabbs shared the setting duties as Johnson dished out 23 of the duo’s 32 assists. Lauren Waclawczyk headlined the back row with 14 digs.
“I was concerned about how we were going to bounce back, but we played pretty well,” head coach Fran Flory said. “We played some different people so they could get some experience. Angela and Tania did a nice job of managing the match.”
Down 7-6 in the opening set, the Tigers reeled off 11 of the next 13 points to build a 17-9 advantage. Cooper cranked three kills and teamed with Schatow for a trio of blocks during the run. LSU totaled an impressive 81 percent sideout efficiency en route to the 25-15 win.
LSU’s offense turned up the intensity in set two as the Tigers jumped out to a 15-7 lead and cruised to a 25-14 triumph. Johnson set a balanced attack to a .481 hitting percentage as six players, including herself, popped multiple kills during the frame.
ULL held a 12-8 edge to start the third set aided by six Tiger attack errors. After a timeout, LSU regrouped to catch the Cajuns at 13-13.
The two teams tied six more times and traded three lead changes before a pair of Cooper kills and a block with Johnson gave LSU a 23-21 advantage. At 23-23, Bensend provided back-to-back kills to secure the sweep.
“Cooper is truly beginning to understand how to defend other team’s offenses and beginning to understand how to be good technically,” Flory said. “The difference in her is not a physical but a mental change. She’s done a good job in studying and preparing for matches.”
LSU concludes the Tiger Classic later tonight against Tulane. First serve against the Green Wave is slated for 8 p.m. with live stats and live available in the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net
LSU vs. UL-Lafayette Volleyball
September 5, 2009
LSU HEAD COACH FRAN FLORY
Opening Statement …
“I thought we played pretty well. I was concerned about how we were going to bounce back. We played some different people today who got some experience. Tania Schatow and Angela Bensend started on the outside and did a very nice job of managing. Brittnee Cooper, once again, was a force. She is awfully good right now and we need to keep giving her opportunities.”
On Brittnee Cooper …
“Cooper has worked really hard to become a good blocker this spring and through the summer. I think she is truly beginning to understand how to defend other people’s offenses and she’s beginning to understand technically how to be good. I think the difference in her is not a physical change it’s a mental change. She’s done a good job in studying and preparing for matches.”
On the difference between Sam Dabbs and Brittney Johnson setting …
“The biggest difference is the amount of confidence Sam has compared to the amount of confidence Brittney has. Athletically, Brittney does a great job, but Brittney doesn’t have as much confidence setting. She needs more experience and that was the goal today to get her more experience so she could feel comfortable running the offense and managing people. She just hasn’t been in those situations enough. She’s going to be a great setter, but she just needs experience and more opportunities. These are the matches that are important for her and important for the future of our program.”
On their match tonight with Tulane …
“Tulane is very, very good. They are very solid. They are an international team and those kids are very experienced. They manage the game well and they don’t give you much; you have to earn points against them. We’re going to have to manage more kills tonight. We did not do a good job of putting the ball on the floor last night and to be successful we’re going to have to score and the easiest way to do that is to put the ball on the floor. Our offense is going to have to take a step up tonight.”
SETTER/RIGHT SIDE BRITTNEY JOHNSON
On bouncing back from last night’s loss to No. 6 Nebraska …
“I think we had to bounce back. There’s no other answer for it. We had to win and come out and stay focused. It’s hard to focus when the game is going slow so we have to do everything we can to push it and make it go fast. We made some big plays out there that turned the game around.”
On Brittnee Cooper …
“She really is in a zone right now. She’s awesome. We give her the ball and she puts it away. She’s definitely one of our go-to hitters. I love playing with her and I love her attitude.”