The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
4-5, 0-1SEC
LSU
8-3, 1-0SEC
Rebels Fall To LSU 3-2 In Conference Opener
9/16/2011 | Volleyball
Sept. 16, 2011
OXFORD, Miss. - Allegra Wells put down 12 kills, while middle blockers Courtney Cunningham and Regina Thomas combined to put down 15 blocks, but it wasn't enough for the Rebels on Friday night as Ole Miss (4-5, 0-1 SEC) fell to LSU (8-3, 1-0 SEC) by a score of 3-2 (25-15, 16-25, 25-27, 26-24, 6-15).
In what was a tight contest down the stretch after splitting two lopsided sets to open the match, the Rebels scratched and clawed their way to force a fifth set, but couldn't hold off LSU down the stretch in the fifth as the Tigers walked away with the win.
The Rebels out-hit the Tigers and out-blocked LSU by a 16.0 to 4.0 margin on the night, but the defense of the Tigers proved to be a difference maker as LSU dug 78 balls to Ole Miss' 56 on the night.
"We blocked very well tonight, but they did a great job of covering defensively which led to them getting more second chance points and more swings," said Ole Miss head coach Joe Getzin. "We have to do a better job of putting the ball down.
"In three of the sets we played well, but we got tentative in sets two and three," Getzin continued. "You can't beat a team like LSU if you get tentative. We have to just come out and start fresh tomorrow and prepare for Arkansas on Sunday by taking the good things we did tonight and building on them."
The Rebels started off hot, using an early run to push things out to a 13-6 advantage that sent the Tigers into a timeout in an attempt to regroup. LSU would fight back, trimming the lead to four at 19-15, but Ole Miss responded with a run and rattled off six straight points to claim the opening frame 25-15.
LSU responded by turning the tables in the second set and running the score out to an early 12-6 advantage on the Rebels that sent the home team into a timeout to halt the Tiger run. Ole Miss couldn't overtake LSU, though, as the Bayou Bengals evened the match at a set each with a 25-16 win in the second frame.
The third frame saw things fall into a pitched battle as both teams fought to take the lead in the match. After running out to a 4-1 lead, the Rebels saw LSU fight back in a set that featured 11 tie scores and four lead changes.
Ole Miss claimed a 13-9 lead that forced LSU to call a timeout, only to see the Rebels call timeout a few minutes later when the Tigers surged back in front 18-16. Ole Miss climbed back into the set, tying the score at 23 and fighting off two set points before LSU claimed the frame 27-25.
It was all Rebels early in the fourth set as the home team jumped out to a 7-1 lead on the visiting Tigers. The early lead proved to be critical to the Ole Miss effort as the Rebels couldn't put LSU away before tying the set at 24 to mark the first tie of the set. The Rebels forced a fifth set, though, taking advantage of an LSU service error and attack error to claim set four 26-24.
The Rebels couldn't quell the momentum LSU found in the fourth set, as the Tigers jumped out on Ole Miss quickly in the fifth set and held an 8-4 lead when the squads switched ends of the court. The Rebels never found an answer as LSU claimed the match 15-6 in the fifth set.
Ole Miss will return to action on Sunday when the Rebels host Arkansas at 1:30 p.m. at the Gillom Sports Center. It will be "Sundaes on Sunday" at the match with fans receiving complimentary ice cream sundaes. Fans are also encouraged to bring canned goods to donate to the SEC "Together We Can" Canned Food Drive.
