Rebels Set To Host Auburn, Georgia This Weekend

Oct. 6, 2010

OXFORD, Miss. - The Rebel volleyball team returns home after two weeks on the road to kick-off a four-match home stand beginning with Auburn this Friday night at 7 p.m. in Oxford.

Ole Miss (10-5, 4-2 SEC) enters the weekend tied with Auburn for third overall in the Southeastern Conference standings and tied for second in the SEC's Western Division. The home stand gives the Rebels a chance to gain ground in the conference race with three Western Division foes coming to Oxford in the next two weekends, including division leader LSU.

Fans are encouraged to come to the matches this weekend and can earn a pair of season tickets to men's basketball at the volleyball matches.

"We're glad to be back at home and playing in the Gillmor Center after two weeks on the road," said Ole Miss head coach Joe Getzin. "We're ready to play in front of our fans and with our home crowd behind us again. Both teams we have coming in this weekend are playing very well. It should be exciting volleyball. We're looking forward to having our fans come out and support us."

The Rebels enter the weekend with several players hitting stride on the court, including middle blocker Regina Thomas among those paving the way. Thomas ranks 18^th nationally in hitting percentage (.395) and is 28^th nationally in blocks per set (1.28). She is the league leader in hitting percentage and is one of the top scoring threats for the Rebels as she has put down 69 blocks this season and 142 kills.

Sophomore outside hitter Whitney Craven leads the Rebel offense in kills, putting down 156 to date and averaging 2.89 kills per set. She is one of four Rebels hovering around the 2.5 kill per set mark in a balanced offense as Craven, Thomas, Miranda Kitts and Allegra Wells are all powerful scoring threats for Ole Miss.

Also among the team leaders is junior libero Morgan Springer. The defensive specialist is second in the SEC in digs per set (5.00) and is among the top 50 nationally in the same category. At the net, Thomas and Kitts are also big parts of the defense for the Rebels as the middle blocking duo both average better than a block per set this season.

The Auburn Tigers enter the weekend with an overall mark of 13-5 and an identical 4-2 mark in SEC play.

Leading the Auburn offense is Sarah Bullock with 174 kills on the year and a 2.90 kill per set average. She is hitting at a .245 clip on the season as the top kill getter for the Tigers. Efficiency is the name of the game for Camila Jersonsky who is hitting at a .345 clip this year, but has only 80 kills to date. She is one of three Tiger players with more than 30 blocks on the season and averaging close to 0.75 blocks per set.

Liz Crouch, the current SEC Defensive Player of the Week, leads the Tigers on the back row with 236 digs on the year for a 3.87 digs per set.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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