BATON ROUGE ? The No. 17 LSU volleyball team sent its senior class of Brittnee Cooper, Sam Dabbs, Lauren DeGirolamo and Marina Skender off in-style with a 3-0 triumph [25-12, 27-25, 25-19] over Alabama to conclude the SEC regular season Sunday at the Maravich Center.
LSU (24-5, 18-2 SEC) pushed its winning streak to nine matches and completed its third consecutive undefeated season against the SEC Western Division. The Tigers also clinched a share of the overall SEC regular season title as No. 13 Florida upended No. 10 Kentucky in four sets.
“It was certainly special for our seniors to end [the regular season] with a win on their home court,” head coach Fran Flory said. “We’re hopeful that we’ll get a chance [to host] the NCAA’s, but you never know so we knew we had to get this one today. We knew that Alabama was a great team, and we would have to really come to play.”
Sam Dabbs circulated 35 assists to go along with eight kills and three blocks. She also set the LSU offense to a .318 hitting percentage highlighted by a .385 clip in the third set.
Lauren DeGirolamo ripped four kills to become the 17th player in program history to eclipse the 1,000 career kills. She also reeled in a career-best 21 digs and tacked on three blocks.
“It’s not only one match,” DeGirolamo said. “This means a lot for us because it’s a culmination of our whole careers so we wanted to come in here, win and take care of business. Not just for us seniors, but for the whole team.”
Marina Skender powered home 11 kills and notched nine digs, while Brittnee Cooper popped eight kills and recorded a match-high five blocks.
Angela Bensend and Michele Williams chipped in seven kills apiece. Lauren Waclawczyk corralled 15 digs for the Tigers.
Alyssa Meuth paced Alabama (8-21, 6-13 SEC) with 13 kills and eight digs. The Crimson Tide also received eight kills apiece from Ashley Frazier and Brooks Webster. Kayla Schmidt distributed 28 assists and added seven digs.
“Traditionally, a lot of schools struggle with senior night,” Flory said. “Our group plays well on senior night because they’re so devoted and so loyal to the people that have walked in their shoes before them. I couldn’t be prouder of our group.”
LSU came out clicking on all cylinders and fired out to a 15-4 advantage in the opening set. Dabbs picked up four kills and six assists to fuel the run. Alabama got back to 20-11 before the Tigers closed out the 25-12 victory on a Williams kill. LSU converted on 11-of-13 sideout attempts as DeGirolamo racked up nine digs.
The two teams went back-and-forth in set two. LSU used an 8-2 spurt to erase an early 9-4 deficit to go ahead 12-11. The Crimson Tide charged back and grabbed a three-point edge on five occasions, the latest at 23-20, before Cooper contributed two kills and two blocks to even the score at 24-24. After trading sideouts, Waclawczyk slapped consecutive aces to secure the 27-25 win. Cooper and Skender cranked five kills each in the frame.
LSU saved its most efficient and balanced performance for the third set. Six Tigers came away with multiple kills as LSU connected for a match-best .385 hitting percentage. LSU raced out to a 10-4 lead forcing Alabama into a timeout. At 19-16, the Tigers scored six of the final nine points capped by a Cooper spike to finish off the 25-19 win.
“I thought we had a pretty balanced attack going today, and they did a great job,” Flory said. “It’s fitting that we set Cooper on match point and she terminates with a statement swing. It was a nice way for her to go out.”
LSU wraps up the regular season at Rice, who qualified for the NCAA’s this weekend by winning the Conference USA Tournament.
First serve is slated for 7 p.m. and live stats are available in the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net. Fans also can follow in-match updates of the five-time SEC Western Division champions via www.twitter.com/lsuvolleyball.
LSU vs. Alabama
Head Coach Fran Flory
On how it felt to win on senior night …
“It was certainly special for our seniors to end with a win on their home court. We are hopeful we will get a chance in the NCAA, but you never know so we knew we had to get this one tonight. We knew that Alabama was a great team, and we would have to really come to play. Traditionally, a lot of schools struggle with senior night, but our group plays well on senior night because they’re so devoted and so loyal to the people that have walked in their shows before them. I couldn’t be prouder of our group.
On the impact the four seniors had on the match …
“I thought we had a pretty balanced attack going tonight, and they did a great job. Lauren DeGirolamo was involved offensively and did a great job with some great plays at the end. It’s fitting that we set Brittnee Cooper on match point and she terminates with a statement swing. It was a nice way for her to go out.
On Lauren Degirolamo getting 1,000 kills in her career …
“It’s a huge milestone. Previously, in the three other years she has played, she has gotten so many more swings than she gets now. I was a little worried we weren’t going to get her to that plateau, and we barely did. I’m glad we did. It’s certainly a great tribute to a great player.”
On the Rice match next week …
“Rice is a very high quality team. They are in the finals of their conference tournament today, and if they win they will be in the NCAA tournament. We are tuning up, trying to get ready, and certainly we know that they are going to be a great opponent. We will be prepared.
Setter Sam Dabbs
On how it felt to win on senior day …
“It means a lot. We wanted to end on a good note. We wanted to show that the senior class is here, and even though we’re leaving we’re not done yet. We’re going to keep on winning and we’re going to go deep into the [NCAA] Tournament. That would be a good way to end it right there.”
On being able to fight back in the second set …
“I think in the first set we definitely came out strong. In the second set, we played to their level. We came back out and realized we were not going to lose this set. We were going to play hard. Everyone was saying how were playing for the seniors today, and everyone did their job. Everyone came out, played hard and we just ran with it.”
On if it was good to be tested a little bit …
“Definitely, especially before you get to the NCAA’s you want to be tested. It’s going to happen in the NCAA’s. We’re not going to be able to just come out and win in three easy. In tournaments it is do or die. You lose, you’re out. It’s good to have those tests and challenges. I think we dealt with it really well.”
On the last set for match point to Brittnee Cooper
“We wanted to end on a strong note, nothing weak. We wanted the crowd to get into it and enjoy the last play. You have to go to a senior on the last play, so Cooper was it.”
On getting ready for a match against Rice next week …
“We’re excited about the NCAA Tournament. We’ve been ready for it all year, so we are hungry for the NCAA’s right now. Playing Rice is good for us right now because it will be a test before the NCAA Tournament.”
Middle Blocker Lauren DeGirolamo
On getting the victory on senior day …
“It’s not only one match. This means a lot for us because it is a culmination of our whole career here so we wanted to come in here, win and take care of business. Not just for us seniors, but for the whole team and what we’ve done all year.”
On becoming one of the three players on the team with 1,000 career kills …
“It just shows the amount of depth and the amount of talent we have on this team. It’s a whole team effort and it shows how much talent we have across the board to be able to do that.”
On the Rice match next week …
“I don’t really know too much about them, but they going to come out hard wanting to play us on their home court. We’re going to have to play well to take care of business there.”