AUBURN, Ala. (EETV) – The Auburn Tigers (12-8) hosted LSU (9-12) in the Auburn Arena Friday for an SEC matchup, falling 0-3 in straight sets to the rival Tigers.
The Tigers came back to Auburn Arena after splitting their last series with Georgia. This game meant more as both teams fought to climb up in conference standings.
Auburn started trailing behind 9-4 with LSU taking an early lead. But with a couple of kills and blocks, Auburn closed the gap to 11-9, only trailing by two. After a media timeout, LSU pulled away and won the set 25-16.
In the second set, the score remained tied 7-7 early on. After LSU made some crucial attacking errors, Auburn took a 13-9 lead. LSU cleaned its mistakes up, bringing the deficit to only one point. The score was 15-14 heading into the break.
Tatum Shipes was able to break the Auburn record for most blocks in a single season reaching the 120 mark, allowing Auburn to take a 20-18 advantage. However, crucial errors by the Tigers skewed the game. LSU built up momentum, coming away with the win 25-23.
Auburn started the third set slow, causing LSU to take a 6-1 lead. Tatum Shipes and Val Green led Auburn's efforts in decreasing the deficit by only two points. A strong run by LSU, including three service aces, allowed the LSU lead to increase to 11. Auburn made one final push with help from Rath and Yavuz who each made critical kills, decreasing the deficit to only five. This momentum couldn’t hold on, as LSU surged away to win the final set 25-17.
Rebecca Rath and Liz Reich tied for kills, totaling eight each. Rath moved up to fifth place in Auburn history for most kills in a single season with 343. Junior Green average a .353 hitting percentage. Jackie Barrett finished the night with a double-double, totaling 13 digs and 22 assists.
Defensively, freshman Kate Curtis finished with 11 digs, while Bella Rosenthall contributed seven digs. Elif Yavuz totaled four stuffs at the net.
Next, Auburn travesl to College Station, Texas to play the Texas A&M Aggies (11-9) in a two-game series.
