The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
16-13, 5-11
Georgia
13-15, 1-15
Rebels Top Georgia 3-1 on the Road
11/20/2016 | Volleyball
Box Score (PDF)
ATHENS, Ga. -- A balanced attack with everyone contributing led to the Ole Miss volleyball team picking up a 3-1 (27-25, 23-25, 25-12, 25-19) win against Georgia on the road Sunday at the Ramsey Center.
With the win, the Rebels are guaranteed their third straight winning season since the mid 80s with a 16-13 overall record heading into the final week of the season. It also marked the fourth straight win against Georgia.
Georgia raced out to an 8-2 lead to start the match forcing Ole Miss to use a timeout early. The Bulldogs maintained their lead throughout until late in the set, when the Rebels tied it up at 22. Georgia regained the lead, 23-22, but then sophomore Kathryn Cather tied it up on the next play with one of her five kills in the set. Junior Kate Gibson delivered the Rebels their first set point, 24-23, but Georgia answered. Cather's fifth kill of the set handed the Rebels another set point, but the Bulldogs tied it again on a Rebel attack error. Senior Aubrey Edie pushed it over for the kill and then Gibson served up an ace on set point to complete the Rebels' comeback, 27-25.
Just like the first set, the Bulldogs took the early lead 7-3 and led 15-9 at the media timeout. Georgia went on to garner six set points leading 24-18, before the Rebels went on a 5-0 run to cut it to one, 24-23. The Bulldogs won the next point to finish the set 25-23 and tie the overall match 1-1.
The Rebels didn't waste any time getting off to a solid start in set three. They hit .333 in the set and broke open a close one with a 14-4 run to go up 21-10 late. Ole Miss closed out the Bulldogs 25-12 to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
Looking to get back in the match and force a fifth set, Georgia gained the first lead in set four and led by five, 13-8, but the Rebels answered with a 7-1 run to lead it 15-14 at the media timeout. After Georgia briefly tied it at 15-15, Ole Miss used a 10-4 run to finish off the Bulldogs 25-19 and the match, 3-1.
Quick Hits
• The Rebels improved to 16-13 overall and 5-11 in the SEC. The win marked their second SEC road win of the season and fourth straight against Georgia.
• With the win, the Rebels are guaranteed their third straight winning season for the first time since posting five consecutive winning seasons from 1982-86.
• Junior outside hitter Lexi Thompson posted her SEC-leading 19th double-double with 15 kills and 15 digs.
• Thompson inched closer to her 1,000th career kill. With 996, she needs four to become the second player this year to reach 1,000 kills and to move up to fifth all-time at Ole Miss.
• Junior right side Kathryn Cather, who has missed nine SEC matches this season due to concussion symptoms and started her first match since the Auburn contest on Oct. 19, tallied a team-high 17 kills on a .480 clip.
• Junior middle blocker Taylor Alexander finished with 13 kills on a .462 hitting percentage. She also added 4 blocks. It marked her third double-digit kill performance in SEC play.
• Alexander moved up to fourth in a single-season with 112 total blocks.
• Junior outside hitter Kate Gibson recorded her 14th double-double with 10 kills and 12 digs.
• Senior Aubrey Edie passed out 53 assists and also chipped in 5 kills on a .625 clip with zero errors.
• Sophomore Caroline Adams tallied a career-high 25 assists as the Rebels finished with 68 digs. They lead the SEC in digs per match.
• With their 68 digs, the Rebels tied the single-season record of 1,791 digs set in 2011.
• Freshman Nicole Purcell notched a career-best four service aces to lead the Rebels as they finished with eight on the day.
• The Rebels hit .272 as a team with 64 kills.
Up Next
Ole Miss will travel to Tuscaloosa on Wednesday to face Alabama at 7 p.m., before closing out the season at home Nov. 25 against South Carolina.
For more information on Ole Miss Volleyball, follow the Rebels on Twitter, @OleMissVB, on Facebook at OleMissVolleyball and on Instagram at OleMissVB. Also follow Coach McRoberts on Twitter, @CoachMcRoberts.
