Auburn volleyball is off to its best start since 2012 after a three-set sweep over the North Alabama Lions.
"It's exciting, but on the other hand it's like 'who cares,'" said head coach Brent Crouch. "Let's get to the next game. It only matters how we're doing this year and how we're doing in this next match."
On Thursday, the Tigers hit the court to take on the Lions at Auburn Arena. Auburn, who was 4-0 on the year, came into the game undefeated and was looking to start the season on a five-game win streak for the first time since 2012.
The Tigers did not get off to as hot of a start as they have in past games, as UNA took a solid lead early. There was a bit of back and forth action as Auburn came back to tie the game at nine before UNA once again went on a run to go up 19-13. Auburn was not done though, as they once again erased the deficit to tie it at 21 points. The Tigers came within their closest set this season as they battled back to win 25-23.
“[UNA] came out with a lot of energy," said Crouch. "They were doing things differently than what we had seen on film."
The second set was less competitive as the Tigers held a commanding lead throughout. No. 7 Rebekah Rath started a rally for Auburn and they never looked back. Auburn ended the set on a 7-0 run and won set two 25-13.
Auburn picked in the third set where it left off in the second, starting off to a 15-7 lead and continuing to dominate the rest of the set. Senior Val Green continued her strong performance with several more kills, and Auburn closed out a big night with another convincing win in the third set: 25-13.
It was a big night for Green, as she led the team with 12 kills on the night. It is the first time in her career that she has led the team in kills. Senior leader Bella Rosenthall also had a strong performance, leading the way with 25 digs.
"It's great to diversify the offense," Crouch said. "That was a goal for us coming into this week. We knew it's been the Rebekah Rath show for the most part and with Liz [Reich] too, but we knew they were going to key on Rebekah. So to have Tatum [Shipes] and Val step up and add just was huge to see."
With the win over North Alabama tonight, Crouch picked up his 100th career win as a coach. This win also brings Auburn to 5-0, the best start for Auburn volleyball since 2012.
Crouch described the win tonight as a “step in the right direction” heading into conference play. Although the final result was a convincing win, the Tigers got off to a slow start.
"Each time we come out and we learn how to make a little adjustment from the match before…," Crouch said. "I feel like every match we’ve played we’ve been pushed in a different way and we’ve responded to that, and that’s what you want out of the pre-season.”
Crouch went on say how proud he was of his team making the necessary adjustments that led to a victory.
The Tigers continue their homestand on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. CT when they take on Santa Clara who Crouch described as “the best opponent [they'll] have played so far.”
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