Overall Record: 16-1
SEC Record: 7-1
SEC Standings: 2nd overall [1st West]
AVCA Ranking: No. 12
Last Week: 2-0
Oct. 8 – Kentucky [W, 3-0 – 25-13, 25-21, 25-22]
Oct. 10 – No. 22 Tennessee [W, 3-1 – 25-23, 30-28, 23-25, 25-20]
Nominee for Offensive Player of the Week
Madie Jones, OH, So., Plano, Texas
Jones continued her hot streak as LSU joined No. 2 Florida as the only SEC teams to defeat Kentucky and No. 22 Tennessee in the same weekend. The 16-1 mark is the program’s best start since the 1991 season. Playing only front row, the sophomore outside hitter hammered home 3.57 kills per set and registered a spike on 51 percent of her swings to vault into the league’s Top 10 in hitting percentage during conference matches. She belted 16 kills against No. 22 Tennessee and has connected for over a .400 hitting ratio in five of her eight conference outings.
Totals for the Week
SP Kills Err. Att. Pct. Assists Aces Rec * Err Rec * Att Digs BS BA TB Team ** Hit Pct.
7 25 4 49 .429 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 .247
Nominee for Defensive Player of the Week
Lauren Waclawczyk, L, Jr., San Antonio, Texas
Waclawczyk anchored LSU’s back row to an astounding 21.00 digs per set as the Tigers claimed a pair of impressive wins over Kentucky and No. 22 Tennessee to improve to 16-1 for the first time since the 1991 season. LSU limited its opponents to a .164 hitting percentage for the weekend and Waclawczyk corralled 5.14 digs per frame, almost a full scoop above her season average. The junior libero racked up 15 digs versus Kentucky and followed up with a 21-dig effort against No. 22 Tennessee. It marked the fifth time that Waclawczyk eclipsed the 20-dig plateau. She secured five or more digs in four of her seven sets and converted on 44-of-46 in the serve-receive department.
Totals for the Week
SP Kills Err. Att. Pct. Assists Aces Rec * Err Rec * Att Digs BS BA TB Team ** Hit Pct.
7 0 0 2 .000 10 2 2 46 36 0 0 0 .247
Nominee for Freshman of the Week
Desiree Elliott, MB, Fr., Cypress, Texas
Elliott notched a pair of solid performances as LSU knocked off Kentucky and No. 22 Tennessee to secure its one-match lead in the SEC Western Division race. Playing only front row, Elliott popped 1.86 kills and added a stifling 1.43 blocks per set. The Cypress, Texas, native ripped 10 kills and tallied six blocks against No. 22 Tennessee. Both feats were one shy of a career-high as Elliott has registered at least four stuffs in her last four matches.
Totals for the Week
SP Kills Err. Att. Pct. Assists Aces Rec * Err Rec * Att Digs BS BA TB Team **Hit Pct.
7 13 4 27 .333 0 0 0 1 1 3 7 10 .247
Notes on the Tigers
LSU held serve at home with a pair of impressive victories against Kentucky and No. 22 Tennessee over the weekend at the Maravich Center. For their efforts, the Tigers vaulted up three spots to No. 12 in the latest edition of the AVCA Top 25 poll and maintained their one-match lead over Ole Miss in the SEC Western Division race. The last time LSU started with a 16-1 record was during the 1991 season when the program notched its second consecutive Final Four appearance. Madie Jones put together an impressive weekend to fuel the LSU offense. She posted 3.57 kills per set and connected for a kill on 51 percent of her swing to surge into the SEC’s Top 10 in hitting percentage during conference matches. The sophomore outside hitter popped 16 kills against No. 22 Tennessee. Angela Bensend and Brittney Johnson continue their reign on top of the SEC rankings with 4.40 kills per set and 10.95 assists per set, respectively. Bensend extended her run to 11 straight matches with double-digit kills. Johnson secured a pair of double-doubles highlighted by 32 helpers to go along with a career-best 17 digs against Kentucky. LSU’s blocking tandem of Desiree Elliott, Tania Schatow and Michele Williams teamed for 30 total blocks aided by an astounding 10 solo stuffs as the Tigers averaged 3.43 rejections per set on the weekend. Williams continues to be the only player to be ranked among the SEC’s Top 10 in kills per set [3.32], hitting percentage [.359] and blocks per set [1.03]. Elliott is ranked fourth with both a .410 hitting ratio and 1.19 blocks per set in SEC matches. LSU’s back row defense has been superb as the Tigers sprawled out for a phenomenal 21.00 digs per set and limited their opponents to a .164 hitting clip over the weekend. Lauren Waclawczyk, Sam Delahoussaye and Meghan Mannari have headlined the group to a 67 percent sideout efficiency [345-512] along with a 96 percent serve-receive rating [416-432] to start conference play. Waclawczyk has reeled in 4.16 digs per set to rank fifth, while her 0.31 aces per set are sixth in the SEC. LSU makes its 2010 television debut with a mid-week tilt against Arkansas [8 p.m., Wednesday] on ESPNU before hitting the road to face Ole Miss [6:30 p.m., Friday] on FSN.