TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The LSU volleyball team will look to build on its recent five-set victory and concludes an eight-match road swing with a Sunday matinee at Alabama. First serve is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. inside of Foster Auditorium.
The Tigers (8-3, 1-0 SEC) put their two-match losing streak in the rear view mirror Friday with a dramatic 3-2 victory at Ole Miss. Madie Jones emerged with a season-high 18 kills, five of her spikes came during the deciding fifth frame. The performance vaulted Jones to 3.10 kills per set for the season and into ninth place in the SEC rankings.
“We’re going to go to Madie in those types of situations because she loves it when we rely on her,” head coach Fran Flory said. “We challenged her in practice during the week to be the one to lead the way and what a fabulous response by her when we needed it the most.”
Malorie Pardo has pieced together four consecutive double-doubles. She handed a career-best 60 assists to go along with 12 digs. Her 11.42 assists per set are second in the SEC, a narrow 0.01 helper per frame away from the league’s top spot.
Desiree Elliott has slapped 10 or more kills in seven straight matches en route to 3.56 kills per set to check in at the No. 5 position in the SEC. She also has notched 26 of her 35 blocks over the seven-match run and her 0.97 stuffs per set are just outside the SEC’s Top 10.
Michele Williams has tallied five or more blocks during four of her last seven outings to claim a team-leading 38 blocks on a 1.14 per set average, third-best clip in the SEC. Offensively, Williams has pounded home double figure kills in four consecutive matches and her 2.89 kill per set are third on the team.
LSU’s back row is spearheaded by Meghan Mannari, who is fifth in the SEC with 4.18 digs per set. She racked up 21 digs at Ole Miss, her second-highest output of her career.
Lauren Waclawczyk enters Sunday’s match five digs shy of passing Lisa Smith (1984-87) for ninth place in program history, while Sam Delahoussaye has added an ace in seven of 11 outings this season.
The trio of Delahoussaye, Mannari and Waclawczyk has come away with perfect passer ratings in each of LSU’s last three matches, a span of 159 receptions.
Alabama (6-5, 0-1 SEC) dropped a 3-1 decision Friday to Arkansas in its SEC opening act. The Crimson Tide were limited to a .122 hitting percentage as Kayla Fitterer was held below her season average with 14 kills. On the season, Fitterer has racked up 4.46 kills per set to rank third in the SEC.
Andrea McQuad and Stephanie Riley share the setting duties for Alabama. The duo has combined to pass out 11.32 assists per set. Defensively, the Crimson Tide is second in the SEC and has garnered 17.24 digs per set. Kelsey Anderson headlines a group of four players to post over 2.75 scoops per stanza.
“Kayla Fitterer is carrying a huge load for Alabama,” Flory said. “She’s doing a great job and putting up big numbers. This is going to be a big task for our group to bounce back after a tough five-set match. We’re going to have to be ready both mentally and physically for another SEC road battle. The teams that can win on the road are the ones that end up winning championships at the end of the season. Ole Miss was a great first step, but this match with Alabama counts just as much in the overall picture.”
Live audio and live stats are available for free at LSUsports.net inside the Geaux Zone. Fans also can follow in-match updates via the program’s social media outlets at http://twitter.com/lsuvolleyball or LSU Volleyball on Facebook.