Southern Miss
6-7
Alabama
12-1
Southern Miss Falls to No. 25 Alabama
9/15/2018 7:54:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Tuscaloosa, Ala. – After taking No. 15 Purdue to five sets on Friday, the Southern Miss volleyball team was gifted another chance to take down a ranked opponent. On Saturday afternoon, No. 25 Alabama was that opponent.
The Crimson Tide held steady in the three-set sweep (22-25, 15-25, 20-25), although Southern Miss managed to push the Tide at pivotal points. The loss ends the non-conference portion of the season for Southern Miss as they sit at 6-7 heading into C-USA play. Â
The two squads battled to a draw midway through the first set, but Alabama was able to push away to secure a first-set win. The Golden Eagles, though, hit their highest hitting percentage in that set with a .209.
Alabama continued to show why its ranked in the second set and recorded a .280 hitting percentage. The Golden Eagles hit .067, the lowest of the match. If Southern Miss wanted to force a fourth set, then they were going to need to give itself a chance in the third set. The Golden Eagles did just that as they jumped out to a 5-2 lead.
However, the Tide responded and went on to trade points with Southern Miss for a majority of the set. Leading 19-18 late in the set, Southern Miss was in control, but the Alabama attack scored seven of the last eight points.
Kylie Grandy led both teams with 13 kills and Sarah Bell led both teams with 31 assists. Catherine Repsher added eight kills on eight points. Grandy, Ashley Berry and Chandler Marshall all recorded solo blocks to give the Golden Eagles seven blocks for the match.
Southern Miss will head to UTSA to open C-USA play on Sept. 21 at 7 p.m.
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