Nov. 14, 2007

Ole Miss and LSU Match Notes

AUBURN - The Auburn volleyball team (11-18, 3-15 SEC) wraps up the 2007 regular season this weekend with road matches at Ole Miss and LSU.

The Tigers open the weekend with a Friday night match at Ole Miss (23-7, 12-6 SEC). Action is set to begin at 7 p.m. in the Gillom Sports Complex. Auburn then travels down to Baton Rouge, La., for a 1:30 p.m., Sunday match at LSU (22-6, 13-5 SEC). The Sunday match will be broadcast live from the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on the Pellican Sports Network.

TIGER BITES
The Auburn Volleyball team is in its 22nd year of existence and holds an all-time record of 335-346 for a .492 winning percentage... Head Coach Laura Farina is in her sixth season with the team and holds a 54-113 (.323) record at Auburn... Last season the Tigers finished with a 13-18 record and were 5-15 in SEC play, finishing sixth in the SEC West... Auburn returns six letterwinners, four starters, from 2006 and welcomes nine newcomers.

SERIES HISTORY
Ole Miss and Auburn are tied, 18-18, in the series all-time between the two schools. The Lady Rebels have dominated recently, though, picking up wins in 12 of the last 14 meetings. Auburn holds a 10-9 advantage when the teams meet in Oxford. Auburn trails 11-26 in the series with LSU. LSU is currently on a 12-match winning streak and has a 14-4 advantage in Baton Rouge.

FOLLOW THE ACTION LIVE
The Sunday match with LSU will have live stats available on LSUSports.net. Fans in the Baton Rouge area will have the opportunity to watch the game live on the Pelican Sports cable channel. Friday's match with Ole Miss is not available for live stats.

NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE FOR AUBURN
This weekend's matches signify the end of the regular season for the Tigers.

LAST TIME OUT
The Tigers are coming off a 3-1 (31-29, 23-30, 22-30, 23-30) loss to Arkansas on Sunday in the team's home finale. Auburn won the first game, 31-29, but fell victim to a rallying Lady Razorback team as they came back to take the next three and the 3-1 win. Whitney Jacob led the team with 14 kills while Jelena Sekulic posted the team's lone double-double with 12 kills and 15 digs. Liz Crouch led the team defensively with 22 digs.

LAST TIME OUT FOR OLE MISS
The Lady Rebels are coming off a 3-1 (22-30, 30-27, 23-30, 27-30) loss at in-state rival Mississippi State. Caitlin Weiss led the team with 20 kills, followed by Lauren Moffett with 14 kills and six blocks. Tara Langley led Ole Miss with 22 digs while Rachel Kieckhaefer was right behind her with 20. As a team, Ole Miss hit only .143 against the Bulldogs.

LAST TIME OUT FOR LSU
The Tigers are on a four-match win streak following a 3-2 (30-23, 21-30, 30-32, 30-28, 15-10) win over Alabama on Sunday. The match was the 11th five-game match of the season for LSU. The Tigers put four players in double figures in the win, led by CVU National Player of the Week Lauren DeGirolamo with her 22 kills and .370 attack percentage. She also chipped in nine blocks in the match. Kyna Washington and Marina Skender followed her with 16 kills each. Defensively, Elena Martinez led LSU with an amazing 43 digs in the match. LSU and Alabama both hit .189 as a team.

LAST TIME VS. OLE MISS
Ole Miss put on an offensive performance as the Lady Rebels hit .312 as a team for the 3-0 (30-22, 30-26, 30-18) win in Auburn. Emily Jones led the team with 12 kills, hitting .409, while Katie Kramer came off the bench for 10 kills. Defensively, Tara Langley led Ole Miss with 15 digs while Lauren Moffett added seven blocks to her seven kills. For Auburn, it was Rachel Shanks leading the team with 15 kills and a .333 attack percentage. She finished off the double-double with 13 digs. Libero Liz Crouch led the Tigers with 17 digs in the match.

LAST TIME VS. LSU
Playing No. 22-ranked LSU, Auburn came out and took a 30-26 win in the first game, but fell as LSU too the next three, 30-21, 30-28, 32-30, for the 3-1 win. Kyna Washington led LSU with 18 kills and 19 digs in the match while Brittnee Cooper chipped in 14. Lauren DeGirolamo posted nine kills and eight blocks in the win. For Auburn, Rachel Shanks led the team with 19 kills and 14 digs. Jelena Sekulic (14 kills, 14 digs), Jessica Glover (14 kills, 12 digs) and Sara Shanks (47 assists, 12 digs) also posted double-doubles in the match. Liz Crouch tallied her first of five 20-dig matches this season as she led the team with 22.