Rome, Ga. – Led by a double-double from
Sommer Rhea, the Auburn University at Montgomery volleyball team defeated Gulf South Conference opponent Shorter 3-1 on the road Friday night for their fourth conference win of the season.
NOTES
- The Warhawks rise to 12-10 on the year, with a 4-4 record in conference play.
- Shorter falls to 7-16 in 2019, and their GSC record now stands at 0-8.
- The Warhawks took the match 25-17, 20-25, 25-18, 25-21.
- AUM now sits in sixth place in the Gulf South Conference Standings, with the top eight teams making the playoffs.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
- Outside hitter Rhea led the team in kills with 18 and paced the team in digs with 22.
-
Isadora Nicolai led the Warhawks in assists with 42 helpers.
- Both Nicolai and
Ariadne Borges recorded a block in the win.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The first set of the match featured a back and forth battle for the first 10 points of the set. The Hawks had a 10-9 lead over the Orange & Black before AUM rattled off nine of the next 10 points led by serves from
Carla Butler and
Skylar Coppinger to give the Warhawks a 17-11 lead. AUM would go on another run later in the set, thanks to the efforts of
Jaylyn Felder, the Warhawks would take a 22-15 lead and eventually took the initial set 25-17.
- Shorter jumped out to a hot start in the second set and were determined to get back into the match. The Hawks would fly out to a commanding 16-8 lead. AUM attempted to come back to bring the match back within range with three consecutive points to run the score to 21-16 at the time, but Shorter bunkered down and took the second set 25-20.
- The third set played similar to the first, a back and forth battle saw the Warhawks lead 8-6 early on. However, the Warhawks would start to pull away from the Hawks in the third set, taking five of the next six points thanks to three kills from Rhea to run the set to 13-8. Shorter stuck around late in the third set, not allowing the Warhawks to pull away and steal the third set without a fight. The set ran to 21-15 before the Warhawks netted three straight scores with two kills from Borges and a kill from Rhea. AUM would not look back as the Orange & Black took the third set 25-18.
- The fourth set started with the two programs trading the first 10 points of the contest and began the fourth frame tied at five. The back and forth affair would continue with neither side able to gain any traction in the set. This trend would change late in the final frame when the Warhawks rattled off five consecutive points led by services from Coppinger. At the end of the run, the Orange & Black led 18-13 and would eventually take the set 25-21 and win the game 3-1.
QUOTING THE COACH
"It was a match of low errors for both teams, which created a volume of long rallies," said AUM head coach
Flavia Siqueira. "Sommer was very consistent at the net, and other players like Giada and Dariona contributed in different moments."
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- The Warhawks had a slight edge in total kills, recording 54, while Shorter netted 51.
- The Hawks netted a .195 swing percentage, while AUM's stood at .250.
- The Orange & Black recorded 81 digs, while the Hawks tallied 73 ups.
UP NEXT
The Warhawks will continue their critical Gulf South Conference road swing with a meeting with the Lee Lady Flames on Saturday, Oct. 25. The match is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.
For the latest on AUM athletics, find us on
Facebook,
Twitter and
Instagram.