Box Score - South Alabama 3, Louisiana-Lafayette 1 (.pdf)
MOBILE, Ala. – Savannah Stewart, Melissa Waelter and Torlandria Jones each recorded double-figure kill tallies Sunday afternoon as the University of South Alabama volleyball team picked up its 13th win of the season with a 3-1 (27-25, 25-18, 23-25, 27-25) victory over Sun Belt Conference foe Louisiana-Lafayette at Jag Gym.
Stewart led the way offensively with 17 kills, while also adding seven digs and an ace. Waelter was right behind her with her fourth-straight double-double – seventh of the season – with 16 kills and 18 digs. Jones chipped in with 10 kills on 17 attacks with no errors for a match-high .588 hitting percentage. She also led the club at the net with four total blocks – one solo and three assists.
“I thought we were pretty consistent today and that most of our team had good offensive numbers,” South Alabama head coach Amy Hendrichovsky said. “We were hitting around .225-.250 each set and that’s what we are looking for in being consistent. Our outsides started out on fire and then we finally found our middles towards the end, which is what we need to stick to.”
Senior Jaguar setter Katariina Kananen also carded a double-double in the victory – her ninth of the season and 24th of her career – with 36 assists and 18 digs.
USA (13-11, 6-4 SBC) will now step out of conference action and continue its five-match home stand when the Jaguars host Jackson State on Wednesday night. First serve is set for 7 p.m. versus the Tigers.
South Alabama is now just one win away from matching the most wins since the 1995 season. The six conference wins are also now tied for the program record, matching the total amount of league wins during the 2010 season. USA also remained perfect at home as the Jaguars are now 6-0 at Jag Gym, equaling the 1982 squad’s home start after the first six matches. That team finished the year 10-0 at home. USA is also 5-0 in SBC matches.
The loss dropped ULL to 14-12 overall and 5-5 in the SBC, while also snapping the club’s four-match win streak.
“I knew coming into the match that we would have to battle (Louisiana-Lafayette),” Hendrichovsky added. “They have been on a win streak and taken on some good opponents lately. It was good for us to get this win today.”
The Ragin’ Cajuns were paced offensively by Lavinia Tataran’s match-high 19 kills. Kelly Weismann and Blair Claypoole also ended the match in double digits with 10 kills each.
ULL had four players finish in double figures in digs led by Caitlyn Auxillen’s 19.
One key stat in the match for the Jags was in the serving department. ULL entered the match leading the conference in that category, averaging 1.6 aces per set, but South Alabama allowed just two aces to the Cajuns in the match, while registering four of its own.
SET ONE: South Alabama 27, Louisiana-Lafayette 25
Early on in the opening set of the match, South Alabama jumped out to a quick five-point advantage (8-3) as Lindsay Schwartz and Stewart had two kills apiece for the Jags.
ULL answered back and tied the contest up as the Ragin’ Cajuns pushed across six of the next seven points and knotted things up, 9-9 after an ace from Taylor Meade.
Holding a one-point lead (12-11), Jones provided a spark for the Jaguars as the redshirt sophomore posted a pair of kills and two block assists for USA’s next four points, extending the lead out to 16-12. South Alabama’s Stewart later gave the Jags their largest lead of the set when the freshman teamed up with Olivia Mohler on a block and slammed home a kill on the next point to give USA a 19-13 advantage.
The Jaguars set one-point away from taking the set point (24-21), but ULL took advantage of a couple of USA miscues and rattled off four-straight points to jump back out in front and set one point away from rallying back to capture the set.
Waelter ended the threat though with her fifth kill of the frame to tie things back up. After a Ragin’ Cajun attack error, Stewart clinched the 27-25 win for USA with another put away.
Tataran had six kills to lead ULL offensively in the set.
SET TWO: South Alabama 25, Louisiana-Lafayette 18
Holding just a one-point lead in the second set, South Alabama was the first to break away as the Jags rattled off a 6-2 run over the next eight points, stretching the lead out to 11-5 on a Mohler kill.
ULL chipped away at the Jaguar lead, cutting it to 11-9, but coming out of a time out, USA responded. Walter posted two more kills and Jenna Hassell dropped a pair of aces to put South Alabama out in front by seven (16-9).
From there, Louisiana-Lafayette was could only get as close as five as the Jaguars went on to take the set 25-18 after a kill from Stewart. The put away was Stewart’s sixth of the frame and 11th of the match.
South Alabama was very efficient in the second set, recording a .304 hitting percentage. ULL struggled offensively in the second, only hitting a .077.
SET THREE: Louisiana-Lafayette 25, South Alabama 23
Neither club was able to take more than a two-point advantage on the other throughout the third set. With the set tied 23-23 following, after a solo block from Schwartz, the Ragin’ Cajuns were able to push across the final two points and capture the 25-23 victory. Tataran clinched the two-point victory for ULL with her 15th kill of the match.
SET FOUR: South Alabama 27, Louisiana-Lafayette 25
Riding the momentum of its first set win of the afternoon, Louisiana-Lafayette got off to a strong start to early in the fourth set, pushing across seven of the first 10 points. Claypoole led the way during the Cajun run, as she registered a pair of kills and two block assists. Spurred on by its defense at the net, ULL went on to lead by as much as six over the first half of the set. Five of Louisiana-Lafayette’s first 12 points came courtesy of the block.
Trailing by five (17-12), Stewart ignited a 6-1 run for the Jaguars with a kill and an ace. Mohler also chipped in with a pair of kills and USA tied the set up at 18-18 following a Cajun attack error.
Four points later, South Alabama took its first lead of the set (21-19) after back-to-back kills from Jones and a block assists from the Alexander City, Ala., native and Schwartz.
The lead would be short-lived though for the Jags as the Ragin’ Cajuns rallied back with three consecutive points. Wiesmann began the scoring spurt with a kill and Abby Flice capped off the run and gave ULL a 22-21 advantage with two kills of her own.
In extra points, Louisiana-Lafayette set one point away from tying the match at two sets apiece, but Stewart had the answer for the Jags as she posted her 16th and 17th kills of the match to put USA one point away from taking the match. The Jaguar defense sealed the victory on the next point when Mohler and Kananen turned back a Cajun attack, giving South Alabama the 27-25 win.
Jones was also played an important part in the two-point win in the final set as she had four kills on six attacks with no errors.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
NOTES: With the win, USA is now 12-31 in the all-time series versus Louisiana-Lafayette and 8-11 in the series in matches played in Mobile. Dating back to the 2007 season, South Alabama has won four of the last six meetings. The loss also snapped the Ragin’ Cajuns’ four-match win streak on the year. USA is now just one win away from matching the most wins since the 1995 season (14). The six conference wins are also tied for the program record, matching the total amount of league wins during the 2010 season. USA also remained perfect at home as the Jaguars are now 6-0 at Jag Gym, equaling the 1982 squad’s home start after the first six matches. That team finished the year 10-0 at home. USA is also 5-0 in SBC matches. With her three block assists against ULL, senior middle blocker Olivia Mohler moved past former Jag Angela Gattis on the program’s career block assists list as she now has 236 for her career for fifth place. Fellow senior Lindsay Schwartz also continued to climb on of the Jaguars’ career blocking list as she moved past Gattis for seventh on USA’s total block list.
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