BATON ROUGE – The LSU volleyball team continues its four-match homestand and wraps up the first half of the SEC slate Friday against Alabama. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Maravich Center.
LSU (13-6, 6-3 SEC) looks to maintain its winning ways and secured victories in three of its last four decisions. The Tigers claimed consecutive four-set victories over Georgia and Auburn last weekend.
LSU won 51 of their last 54 decisions versus the SEC West since the 2006 campaign, including a 3-1 triumph over Alabama (10-11, 3-7 SEC) back on Sept. 18 in Tuscaloosa. Offensively, the Crimson Tide is paced by Kayla Fitterer’s 4.24 kills per set which rank third-highest in the SEC. However, Fitterer has missed UA’s last four matches due to injury.
In Fitterer’s absence, Andrea McQuad and Cortney Warren have stepped up to fill the void. Warren powered home 4.00 kills per set on a .386 hitting percentage, while McQuad slapped 3.17 kills per set highlighted by a 16-spike performance during the Tide’s 3-1 win over South Carolina. On the back row, Cristina Arenas has posted 3.30 digs and 0.26 aces per set to rank 10th in the SEC in both categories.
“The biggest challenge is that the SEC coaches are so good,” head coach Fran Flory said. “They’re very thorough, their staffs work really hard, and they’re very committed to being great programs so the match-up difficulty the second round is not just the players playing against each other and executing a game plan. It’s also about the adjustments the coaching staffs are making. Our staff enjoys that challenge, and it will be interesting to see the adjustments people make the second time they play us.”
LSU’s runs through Malorie Pardo, reigning SEC Freshman of the Week. She lifted her season average to 11.60 assists per set, second among SEC setters and 12th nationally. The League City, Texas, native has eclipsed the 50-helper mark on seven occasions.
“It’s fun to watch Malorie take what we’re teaching her in the gym and bring it to the court in matches,” Flory said. “So much of our offense is not just delivering the ball but it’s creating the right opportunity by making the right choices during a last-second decision. Malorie is becoming better at that as the season has progressed. When she does that, our offense is more efficient and that was last weekend.”
Pardo has fueled a pair of LSU’s offensive standouts, Desiree Elliott and Madie Jones, into the SEC’s Top 10 in kills per set.
Elliott, who is sixth in the SEC with a team-high 3.50 kills per set, has belted double figure spikes during 14 of her last 15 matches, including a .647 hitting clip against Georgia to produce her highest effort since opening weekend.
Jones has connected for 10 or more kills in seven of her nine SEC tilts and her 3.85 spikes per set in conference play is third-best among the league leaders. She racked up a career-best 21 kills during the first meeting against Alabama.
Michele Williams has knocked 2.95 kills per set to rank third on the squad. She has totaled a team-high 1.03 blocks per set to check in at fifth place in the SEC’s rankings.
Helen Boyle has raised her level of play and totaled over a .300 hitting ratio in her last two appearances. She also has reeled in 3.06 digs per set and collected 10 or more scoops during six of nine SEC matches.
Nicole Willis returned to the starting lineup and garnered 10 kills versus Georgia. It was Willis’ first double figure kills effort since her 12 spikes at Alabama.
LSU’s back row defense is sparked by Meghan Mannari, one of SEC’s best at libero. Last time out, she plucked 25 digs against Auburn en route to her second-highest output of her career. She has sprawled out for an SEC-leading 4.88 scoops per set in league matches.
Sam Delahoussaye tacked on consecutive double figure dig outings last weekend to bring her total to seven for the season, while Lauren Waclawczyk enters the Alabama match three digs away from passing Detra Brown [1983-86] for the No. 8 spot on LSU’s all-time list.
“Every time we’ve challenged the back row this season they’ve responded and last weekend was no exception,” Flory said. “This week they’re back in the gym, prepared and extremely motivated. They have gotten their confidence back. I think we will have a very balanced ball control effort this weekend.”
Friday’s match will be carried live on KLSU 91.1 FM in the Baton Rouge area. Live video and live stats also are offered inside the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net. In-match updates also are available via the program’s social media outlets at http://twitter.com/lsuvolleyball or LSU Volleyball on Facebook.
The Alabama contest marks the third of four Friday Night Meal Deals featuring shrimp etouffee served over rice with sides of broccoli and cauliflower. The meal is available for $7 starting at 6 p.m. inside the Courtside Club located at the Northwest Corridor entrance of the arena. Fans can reserve the meal in advance by emailing promotions@lsu.edu or by contacting Katie at (225) 578-5050.
Friday’s match also is the inaugural “Rock the PMAC” event where LSU’s drum line will perform during intermission. The first 500 fans will receive a commemorative drumstick.
For every home match, LSU volleyball will be collecting books as part of its season-long book drive to benefit the Everybody Reads Program through Volunteer in Public Schools. Fans are asked to bring new or used elementary level books to help local students.