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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Alabama
Volleyball Set To Host Weekend Series Against Alabama
10/6/2022 | Volleyball
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OLE MISS (5-9, 1-3 SEC) vs ALABAMA (6-10, 0-4 SEC) Oct. 7-8 • Oxford, Miss. Gillom Center |
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| Ole Miss Notes (PDF) • Alabama Notes (PDF) • SEC Notes (PDF) |
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| Friday, Oct. 7 7 p.m. CT  |
Saturday, Oct. 8 4 p.m. CT  |
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| Watch | Live Stats | Watch | Live Stats |
RALLY POINTS
• Ole Miss volleyball returns to Oxford to host Alabama in a weekend series, October 7 and 8.
• The Rebels split with the Tigers last weekend, picking up their first SEC victory of the season.
• Cammy Niesen was named SEC Freshman of the Week after recording back-to-back 20-plus dig matches.
• Sasha Ratliff was dominant against LSU, racking up 38 kills on 61 total attacks for a .492 hitting percentage on the weekend.
• Senior Anna Bair picked up her 1,000th career kill last Friday, becoming the 15th Rebel in program history to accomplish the feat.
• Bair has been one of the conference's top attackers so far in 2022, ranking eighth in the SEC and 86th nationally with 3.68 kills per set.
• Ole Miss has leaned heavily on its freshmen this season. Aly Borellis ranks seventh nationally among freshmen with 9.80 assists per set.
• Middle blocker Sasha Ratliff was one of 15 student-athletes named to the Preseason All-SEC Team. She earned all-conference honors last year after a breakout sophomore campaign.
• The 2022 roster features 12 members from last season's NCAA Tournament team, six freshmen and Utah transfer Sommer Daniel.
SCOUTING THE TIDE
First year head coach Rashinda Reed and Alabama enter the weekend with a 6-10 record on the season. The Crimson Tide have yet to win a match in conference play, going up against
#12 Florida, Auburn and #18 Kentucky.
Kendyl Reaugh and Alyiah Wells lead the offense, averaging 3.20 kills per set and 2.63 kills per set, respectively. Wells also leads the team with an impressive .360 attacking percentage through the team's first 16 matches. Setter Brooke Slusser has the Alabama team hitting at a .173 clip on the year, tallying 9.54 assists per set. Defensively, Wells has a team-high 60 blocks on the season, and libero Victoria Schmer paces the team with 2.67 digs per set.
SERIES HISTORY
Alabama leads the all-time series with Ole Miss 47-28; however, the Rebels have been in control in recent years, boasting a 10-5 record since 2012 and a 10-3 record in Oxford dating back to 2006. Last season, the Rebels swept both meetings with the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa.
PREVIOUS MEETING
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Capping off its regular season with an exclamation point, Ole Miss volleyball swept Alabama for the second straight day at Foster Auditorium.
In the opening set, Ole Miss came out in control despite Alabama 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 continued to run away with it, taking the set 25-16.
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 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 set win with two big kills.
DIGGIN' IT
Follow back-to-back 20-dig performances on the road, Ole Miss libero Cammy Niesen was named SEC Co-Freshman of the Week. Niesen averaged 4.40 digs per set as the Rebels picked up their first conference victory of the season, rallying past LSU in five sets. The Cincinnati, Ohio, native anchored the Rebel defense on the road in Baton Rouge, collecting a career-high 24 digs on Friday against LSU. She followed it up with 20 digs the following night, helping lead Ole Miss to its first conference victory of the season. Niesen is one of six SEC student-athletes to record back-to-back 20-plus dig matches this season.
SHINING BRIGHT ON THE BIG STAGE
Even before they stepped on campus, head coach Kayla Banwarth's first recruiting class was making waves. Five of the six Rebels earned AVCA High School All-American honors their senior season, coming to Oxford ready to factor into the mix immediately. So far this season, Aly Borellis, Vivian Miller and Cammy Niesen have all seen the court and even established themselves as starters. Borellis has had a stellar start to her freshman campaign, ranking seventh nationally among freshmen at the setter position with 9.80 assists per set. Outside hitter Vivian Miller has also come on strong as of late, averaging 2.10 kills per set on the year and finishing in double-figures in four of her last six matches. Niesen rounds out the trio, having started all 14 matches at libero. She leads the team in digs and has tallied 10 or more 10 times, including three 20-plus dig performances.
👑 AB1K 👑
Senior Anna Bair has been a staple of the Ole Miss attack each of the past four seasons she's donned a Rebel uniform. This past weekend, the strong-armed St. Louis native reached the 1,000 kill milestone against LSU, becoming the 15th Rebel in program history achieve the feat. On her quest for 1K, Bair is hitting at a .224 clip in her career and averaging 3.03 kills per set. A leader on the court, Bair has tallied double-digit kills in 57 matches, including 12 this season.
BATTLE TESTED
Despite an tough 4-6 start to the 2022 season, the Rebels gained valuable experience on the court that will prepare them for conference play and a run in the NCAA Tournament. Ole Miss had one of the tougher opening weekends across the country, hosting #9 Georgia Tech and #17 Illinois for the Ole Miss Invitational. They came up just short of the Yellow Jackets, scoring 24 points or more in all four sets, and fell to Illinois in four sets. The uphill climb continued the following weekend at the Husker Invitational, where they battled with #2 Nebraska. The Rebels picked up their first two victories of 2022 at the Bobcat Invitational and followed it up with another 2-1 weekend at the Jaguar Invitational to round out the non-conference slate.
CLEANING UP ON THE COAST
Ole Miss capped off another 2-1 weekend at the Jaguar Invitational in Mobile to close out non-conference play. The Rebels took care of business, sweeping Florida A&M and Eastern Kentucky while falling to South Alabama. Anna Bair had another big weekend finishing with 43 kills, and freshman Vivian Miller ranked second on the team with 29 kills, including back-to-back career-high performances.
TEXAS TWO-STEP
The Rebels found their groove September 9 and 10 at the Bobcat Invitational in San Marcos, Texas. Ole Miss got back to winning ways, sweeping Sam Houston behind an efficient attack led by Anna Bair and Payton Brgoch. In the nightcap, the Rebs battled the host, Texas State, eating the Cats up in four sets. Bair and Sasha Ratliff each laid down 17 kills, while freshman setter Aly Borellis powered the offense to a .329 hitting percentage with a career-high 51 assists.
PUTTING THE LEAGUE ON NOTICE
Ole Miss junior middle blocker Sasha Ratliff was one of fifteen student-athletes selected to the 2022 Preseason Volleyball All-SEC Team. Ratliff established herself as one of the top middle-blockers in the SEC last season, earning an all-conference nod as well as AVCA All-Region honors. The Atlanta, Georgia, native paced the team with a school record 113 assisted blocks and was one shy of the single-season total block record with 129. Ratliff was also a top offensive contributor, ranking third in the conference and 28th nationally at a .385 hitting clip.
ROOKIES IN THE RANKINGS
Head coach Kayla Banwarth added top talent to the Rebels' 2022 class with the addition of six signees, including multiple Prep Volleyball Top-150 honorees. Five of the six new Rebels received AVCA High School All-America honors their senior year, tied with Florida for the most in the nation.
Aly Borellis makes her way to Oxford as a four-year letterwinner at Notre Dame Preparatory and a member of the Prep Volleyball Top-150 list. A decorated setter out of Rochester, Michigan, Borellis has racked up multiple All-American honors in her high school career, including a pair of PrepVolleyball First Team honors, AAU All-American laurels and 2021 AVCA First Team All-American honors.
Middle blocker Tessa Jones joins the Rebels as a Prep Volleyball Top-150 recruit and 2021 AVCA Honorable Mention High School All-American. In her four-year career at Seton High School in Cleves, Ohio, Jones tallied 606 kills and racked up 144 total blocks.
Outside hitter Shayla Meyer closed out her high school career with over 1,700 kills. The Superior, Nebraska, native was named first team All-Conference three years in a row, found a spot on the C-2 Volleyball All-State first team in 2020 and 2021 AVCA Honorable Mention All-American honors.
Ready for her first season in a Rebel uniform, Vivian Miller comes to campus as a highly touted recruit out of Jupiter, Florida, being named to the Prep Volleyball Top-100, AVCA Phenom List, AVCA Best and Brightest First Team and 2021 AVCA Second Team All-American honors. At Jupiter High School, the outside hitter totaled 500 kills in 154 sets played.
Cammy Niesen, listed as a defensive specialist, hopes to make an impact for the Rebels at the libero position. The 2021 AVCA Second Team High School All-American graduated as the all-time dig leader at Roger Bacon High School, where she led the Miami Valley Conference in digs as a senior. Niesen was also named first team All-District, District Player of the Year and first team All-State in 2020.
Outside hitter Emma Schwieger caps off the freshmen talent. The Bishop Moore Catholic High School grad was tabbed as the No. 5 player and the No. 1 right side in Florida for the class of 2022 and was listed as one of Prep Volleyball's 2022 players to watch.
RATLIFF, WHITE AND BLUE
After establishing herself as one of the top middle-blockers in the SEC last season, Sasha Ratliff received an invitation to the Women's National Team Open Program in Colorado Springs, Colorado, this past February. The junior spent three days training with some of the top athletes in the nation as part of the selection process for the U.S. Women's National Team and the 2022 U.S. Women's Collegiate National Team.
NEW FACES TO THE BENCH
Back on the bench for year two with the Rebels is Brad Creamer; however, when Ole Miss takes the court this season, he'll have a new role with the program: assistant coach. This offseason, Creamer was elevated to assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Rebels after assisting them in one of the best seasons in program history. Also added to the staff this offseason was assistant coach Bre Henry, who makes her way to Oxford from Santa Clara University. During her time with the Broncos, Santa Clara produced three AVCA All-Region selections, 12 All-WCC accolades and 10 WCC all-academic nods. Prior to Santa Clara, Henry was a graduate assistant with one of the nation's elite programs at Nebraska alongside Banwarth. Rounding out the new faces is volunteer assistant Douglas Florencio, who just wrapped up his playing career at King University and University of Charleston.
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.
