BATON ROUGE, La – Outside hitter Jurnee Robinson turned in her fifth double-double of the season to help lead LSU past Alabama 3-1 (18-25, 25-18, 25-16, 25-16) Sunday afternoon at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
LSU (10-12, 5-7 SEC) picked up its fifth consecutive win over Alabama (10-14, 0-13 SEC) in the all-time series, including two wins this season to sweep the 2023 regular season series. The Bayou Bengals hit .261 in the match and served tough with 10 aces, marking the fourth time this season LSU has recorded 10 or more aces and the second time in a three-match span. On the defensive side of the net, the Tigers’ seven blocks constrained Bama to a .161 hitting percentage, making it the seventh time this season LSU has held its opponent under a .200 attacking percentage.
Robinson had a match-high 14 kills while adding 11 digs, two aces and two blocks to her stat line. Right side Ellie Etcher documented 13 kills for the second consecutive match and logged a .500 hitting percentage and two blocks.
Middle blocker Anita Anwusi led the way with four blocks and now joins All-American Wendy Stammer, ranking No. 10 all-time with 413 career blocks. Anwusi also landed nine kills, had a .444 hitting percentage, and led all players with a career-high four aces. Middle blocker Alexis Roberson and right side Jade Demps each contributed three blocks.
Setter Maddie Waak handed out 25 assists and had nine digs, and setter Emily Mitter had 16 assists and eight digs. Both Waak and Mitters had one ace. Libero Erin Carmichael led the match with 16 digs and had seven assists, one kill and one ace.
Set 1
Alabama held the early advantage and led by as many as three points, but LSU strung together three consecutive points to tie the score at 14 before going into the media timeout down 15-14. The Crimson Tide scored on three of the following four rallies to regain their three-point lead at 18-15 when the Tigers called their first timeout. LSU pieced together a few points but called its final timeout, trailing 21-17. Alabama closed the set on a 4-1 run and won 25-18.
Set 2
The second set featured seven ties and four lead changes. Bama used a 4-0 run to build a 9-6 lead when LSU called a timeout. The Tigers found their momentum and pulled away with a 9-0 run, making the score 16-11 and burned through both of Alabama’s timeouts. UA came within three points at 20-17, but LSU converted on five of the final six volleys to win the frame 25-18, evening the match 1-1. LSU had a .459 hitting percentage while holding the Crimson Tide to .152. Robinson led all players with six kills on eight attempts (.625), and Anwusi followed with five kills on seven errorless swings (.715). Echter recorded a .800 hitting percentage from four kills on five perfect swings.
Set 3
LSU started the set on fire with an early 9-2 lead thanks to a 7-0 run. Alabama battled back with its own 7-0 run before LSU used its first timeout of the set with the score knotted 9-9. After both teams exchanged points to 11-11, LSU created some space on the scoreboard with a 4-0 run to go ahead 15-11 and kept its four-point advantage at 18-12 when Alabama signaled for time. The Tigers kept their foot on the gas and finished the set on a 4-0 run, winning the stanza 25-16. LSU held Alabama to a .045 hitting percentage thanks to two blocks and 11 digs. Offensively, the Tigers recorded 12 kills and served tough for six aces. Anwusi had three aces in the set, and Carmichael added two.
Set 4
The Tigers scored the first two points of the set but found themselves down 3-2 after a small burst from Bama. LSU responded and scored on six of the next seven points to hold an 8-4 lead when Alabama called a timeout. The Crimson Tide got within two points, but the Tigers never relinquished their lead for the remainder of the match. After a late 3-0 run to make the score 19-13 LSU, the home team retained all the momentum and ultimately closed the set on a 5-1 run for the 25-16 victory. The Tigers hit .364 in the set and had four players record three or more kills, including four from Echter and three from Robinson, Roberson, and outside hitter Sanaa Dotson, who finished with seven kills in the match.
Up Next
LSU hits the road for a match at No. 20 Florida on Friday, Nov. 10, in Gainesville, Fla., and then takes on South Carolina on Sunday, Nov. 12 in Columbia, S.C.
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