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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Victorious in Season Opener
8/26/2016 | Volleyball
Grand Forks, N.D. - With a couple of new faces mixed in with some veterans, the Ole Miss volleyball team used a balanced attack in their season opener Friday to defeat UC Davis 3-1 at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
Double-doubles by senior setter Aubrey Edie and junior outside hitters Kate Gibson and Lexi Thompson paced the Rebels to the 25-20, 23-25, 25-14, 25-19 win. It marked the third straight season-opening win under head coach Steven McRoberts.
The Rebels went on an 8-2 run to build a 16-10 lead midway through set one. The Aggies pulled to within two, 18-16, before Ole Miss went on a 7-4 run to close out the set 25-20.
Ole Miss led by five early in set two, and hit .333, but UC Davis rallied to take the set 25-23 to even the match. In set three, the Rebels gained the early advantage on a .343 clip and never relinquished it, winning 25-14 to take a 2-1 lead overall.
Trailing 2-5 early in set four, the Rebels won 10 straight points on solid serving by Kathryn Cather to take a 12-5 lead. UC Davis could only get as close as five the rest of the way, as the Rebels closed out the set 25-19 and the match.
Quick Hits
รโข This marked the first ever meeting between the two schools.
รโข Ole Miss improved to 19-21 all-time in season opening matches and 3-0 under head coach Steven McRoberts.
รโข Three Rebels posted double doubles
รโข Senior Aubrey Edie posted a double-double with 44 assists and 11 digs. In addition, she added 5 kills on a .455 clip. Edie now needs 231 assists to set the career record.
รโข Junior Lexi Thompson posted a double-double with 13 kills and 12 digs.
รโข Junior Kate Gibson posted a double-double with 15 kills and 10 digs. She was one of her career-high of 16 kills last year against NC State.
รโข Sophomore Kathryn Cather added 11 kills while breaking her career-high in digs with 7 (previously 5). She also hit .409.
รโข Junior Taylor Alexander posted a career-high 4 solo blocks and tied her career-high in total blocks with 8.
รโข The Rebels finished with 14 total team blocks.
รโข Two freshmen started in their first match for the Rebels. Nayo Warnell started at middle blocker and finished with 4 blocks, 6 kills and hit .385. Nicole Purcell started at libero and posted 13 digs.
รโข Sophomore Caroline Adams added 11 digs.
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.
