AUBURN, AL (EETV)-- The Auburn Tigers hosted the No. 14 Texas Longhorns in Neville Arena, setting a record-high attendance of 3,940 fans. Junior Madison Scheer showcased her skills with a team-leading 14 kills, although it wasn’t enough to stop the Longhorns. Auburn (14-10, 4-9 SEC) fell to No. 14 Texas (14-6, 9-3 SEC) in straight sets, 3-0 (25-11, 25-21, 25-15).
Scheer, a preseason All-SEC honoree from Eureka, Missouri, set the tone early, delivering four kills in the opening set. Alexis Dacosta recorded four digs alongside starting setter Kalei Edson.
Although the Tigers started strong, the Longhorn’s offense was difficult to contain in the first set as their hitting percentage was above .300, allowing them to secure the lead.
In the second set, Auburn began to find its rhythm as the team’s strong passing helped them achieve its highest offensive efficiency of the night at .270. Scheer capitalized on the improved play, contributing five kills on .316 for the set. She finished the game with 14 kills, her 20th time this season reaching double-digit kills.
Auburn closed the gap 22-20, but a final surge from Texas left the visitors up two sets to none.
Going into the third set, the Tigers did not down. Lauren Dreves had four kills from both the outside and the back row, while Bella Bell tallied five kills. Auburn’s defense also stepped up as Chelsey McCurdy totaled five blocks and Bel Zimmerman chipped in with three. Senior Fallan Lanham registered 10 digs, her highest since she recorded 13 in the Tiger’s season opener against North Alabama.
Despite Auburn’s fight, Texas sealed the match with strong scoring runs in the final set, completing the sweep and securing the win.
Head Coach Brent Crouch had some comments after the match– ”I thought there were a ton of positives out there despite the final score. It was easily our best passing match of the season. Offensively, we saw a lot of good moments in the back row and on the slide. We’ll take a look as a staff in closer detail but again, there weren’t many reasons to hang our heads. Texas is an incredibly good team with probably the best player in the country in Madisen Skinner.”
The Orange and Blue will return to Neville Arena on November 20th at 6:00 pm CST to host the Florida Gators.
