The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
21-8,10-8SEC
Alabama
10-20,2-16SEC
Volleyball Caps Off Regular Season With Sweep of Alabama
11/27/2021 | Volleyball
Rebels Finish with Best Winning Percentage in Rally Scoring Era
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Capping off its regular season with an exclamation point, Ole Miss volleyball swept Alabama for the second straight day at Foster Auditorium. The Rebels .724 (21-8) winning percentage is the best in program history in the rally scoring era, and their 10 SEC victories are the most since 2010.
Hitting over .300 for the second consecutive match, Ole Miss set a school record for best attacking percentage with a season mark of .258. The Rebels shared the love as Lauren Thompson finished with a team-high nine kills and Katie Corelli and Anna Bair tallied seven. Sasha Ratliff recorded four block assists, giving her 112 this year to break the single-season record.
In the opening set, Ole Miss (21-8, 10-8 SEC) came out in control despite Alabama (10-20, 2-16 SEC) tying the match up at five-all early. The Rebels went on to build up a comfortable lead at 15-10, with the offense feeding Thompson early. After extending the lead to seven, the Crimson Tide called a timeout to regroup. Alabama was able to string together a 3-0 run, but Ole Miss began continued to run away with it, taking the set 25-16. Thompson was unstoppable in the set, hitting .700 with seven kills.
The Rebels continued to cruise in set two. Ole Miss was the first to 15, nearly doubling up the Tide. It was pure domination as the Rebels collected four service aces in the set. Once again, Alabama was able to put points on the board late, but two kills from senior Aubrey Sultemeier helped slam the door closed on a comeback as Ole Miss picked up a 25-16 set victory.
Alabama won the opening point for the first time this weekend and took its only lead of the day at 1-0 in the third and final set. The Rebels quickly put two points on the board and never relinquished the lead. Thompson fueled a 5-0 run with two more service aces, giving her a career-high five on the day. It was all Ole Miss the rest of the way as Sultemeier put the exclamation point on the 14-point win with two big kills.
Ole Miss will await to see its fate Sunday as the NCAA Tournament field of 64 is revealed at 7:30 p.m. CT. Fans can tune in to the selection show on ESPNU.
Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissVB, Facebook at Ole Miss Volleyball, and on Instagram at @olemissvb. You can also follow head coach Kayla Banwarth on Twitter @KaylaBanwarth2.
