FRIDAY: Ole Miss loses five-set heartbreaker
Looking for the upset, Ole Miss (13-14, 3-11 SEC) jumped out to a 2-0 set lead over Georgia (19-8, 9-6), but after halftime, Georgia rolled Ole Miss in the final three sets and took home a 3-2 victory Friday night.
“It’s a really disappointing loss,” head coach Joe Getzin said. “My hat’s off to Georgia. I thought they did a nice job of rebounding after the break. I don’t think we matched their intensity after the break.”
Georgia struggled in the first two set,s as they had 25 total errors. In the second set, which Ole Miss won 25-10, Georgia had 16 errors and just 10 points. The Bulldogs had five reception errors and nine attack errors, while they hit -.074.
Ole Miss’ attacking benefitted from the errors, as they hit above their average in the first two sets with a hitting percentage on .303 and .286, respectively.
Sophomore middle blocker Nakeyta Clair posted her fifth straight match with double-digit kills, as she had 15, eight of which came in the first two sets.
Georgia had just 19 digs through the first two sets, but had 17 in set three and 19 in set four. Allison Summers led the Bulldogs with 18 digs, while Brittany Northcutt added 15 more.
This improved digging led to Ole Miss to struggle finishing off points, as they had 19 kills but 20 attack errors in the final three sets.
“One of the things we’ve got to learn is that when teams push us, we can push back on them,” Getzin said. “There’s another level that obviously Georgia went to, and we have to be able to respond.”
Three Bulldogs reached double-digits in kills. Northcutt notched a double-double with 17 kills, Lauren Teknipp had 13 kills and Tirah Le’au added 10 more.
Freshman setter Aubrey Edie got her seventh double-double of the season with 11 digs and 34 assists. It is her third double-double in the last four matches.
Junior libero Cara Fisher had 15 digs to lead Ole Miss defensively; it was her fourth straight match with at least digs.
Ole Miss had seven aces in the match, four of which came from junior defensive specialist Rachel McLamore. The four aces ties a career-high for McLamore, and a season-high for the team. Sophomore defensive specialist Evan St. Laurent, senior outside hitter Kara Morgan and Cara Fisher all added another ace.
Despite the match going to five sets, each individual set was not particularly competitive. There were only three lead changes throughout the entire match.
It was the second match for Ole Miss this season that went five sets against Georgia. Ole Miss dropped their match in Athens on Oct. 4.
SUNDAY: Ole Miss falls in three sets to No. 17 Kentucky
Ole Miss was gunning for another upset on Sunday, but they were swept by No. 17 Kentucky.
The Rebels used comebacks late in each set to get close, but ultimately, dropped all three by nine total points.
“Today, I was proud of the way the team battled,” head coach Joe Getzin said. “If we make a play here or there down the stretch, the score reverses itself.”
Kentucky had two solid hitting sets, as they hit over .300 in the first and third sets. In the second set, Ole Miss picked up their defense at the net, getting five blocks. Coming in, Kentucky was hitting.255, and Ole Miss was averaging 2.2 blocks per set.
Sophomore middle blocker Ty Laporte led the Rebels at the net, as she had two solo blocks and two assisted blocks. Kentucky had three different players with at least nine kills.
Ole Miss hit well in the first set, posting a hitting percentage of .276, but they struggled in the next two sets and their hitting fell to .137 for the match.
Freshman right-side hitter Melanie Crow had a big day for the Rebels, as she posted a match-high 12 kills on 23 attacks. Sophomore outside hitter Seini Moimoi, who had only played in four SEC matches this season, saw increased playing time as she action in all three sets. She had yet to play three sets in any match this year. Moimoi had five kills on 18 attacks, but also had seven attack errors.
Freshamn setter Aubrey Edie showed her versatility, as she had 26 assists, six digs, five kills and a solo block. It was the eighth time this year she has had a game of at least 20 assists, five digs and five kills.
For Ole Miss, it was the third straight the loss and 12th loss in 15 SEC games.
“Losing sucks,” Getzin said. “There’s no doubt about it. The kids are disappointed in the loss, but there are some positives from a loss like this.”
Ole Miss will ahead to the state of Alabama for their next two matches, as they take on Alabama on Friday, Nov. 22, and Auburn on Sunday Nov. 24. The final Ole Miss home game will be on Nov. 27 against LSU.
For continuing coverage of Ole Miss volleyball, follow @Tyler_RSR and @thedm_sports on Twitter.
— Tyler Bischoff
