The Auburn Arena transformed into a boxing ring Saturday night as the Auburn volleyball team wrapped up the War Eagle Invitational and their non-conference schedule with a 3-2 victory over the Northwestern State Lady Demons.
This one was a barnburner for the Tigers.
After defeating Jacksonville State 3-0 earlier in the day, it was a slow start for the Tigers as Northwestern State came out throwing punches, using a combination of stingy defense led by senior Keelie Arneson, and strong digs to take the first set 25-19.
"All our games this weekend went smoothly and we didn't expect to be pushed this game," said freshman setter Alexa Filley, "When they came out and were digging all of our balls we had to step back and re-think what our game plan was."
Auburn head coach Rick Nold said he felt that Northwestern had his team on their heels early.
"Northwestern State has a really good team," Nold said. "They came out, they played aggressive, and they really controlled the pace of the game and made us chase them a lot."
The Tigers were able to ignite their offense in the second set, rallying behind the hitting of Breanna Barksdale and Courtney Crable, to tie the match at one.
However, the Lady Demons took the hits and continued to swing back.
The Tigers faced plenty of adversity throughout this match. Northwestern State resisted Auburn's surge and re-established control by winning the third set 25-17.
After pulling away in the fourth set, Northwestern State did not flinch and continued to throw haymakers into the final set, keeping the Tigers on the ropes.
Auburn kept its composure and delivered the knock out blow in the fifth and final set, putting the Lady Demons down for the count, and becoming the pound-for-pound champions of the War Eagle Invitational.
Sophomores Stephanie Campbell and Breanna Barksdale took home all-tournament honors and freshman Alexa Filley was recognized as the tournaments most valuable player. Coach Nold and his players understood the importance of this victory.
"We don't get very many opportunities to win tournaments," Nold said. "We don't have a conference tournament, so when you get into these situations you push through."
The Tigers will now shift their focus to the Florida Gators, and hope to ride the momentum of this victory into conference play. Nold said he believes his girls will be ready to take on the challenge.
"They have a lot of athleticism," Nold said. "We're going to continue to worry about us. We've improved each week and in each tournament we've played in. They're going to pressure us in a lot of ways, but we played with a lot of confidence tonight and against Florida State and that's what its going to take against Florida."
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