It was all defense, all night, inside Neville Arena as Auburn’s front line smothered Florida State with 17 blocks, carrying the Tigers to a 3-0 sweep (25-21, 25-23, 25-20) and their sixth win of the campaign.
The opening set immediately belonged to Auburn’s front line. Graduate middle blocker Kate Mansfield had already earned a reputation as one of the best blockers in the SEC, and she showed it again with three rejections in the first few rallies. She went on to set a new career-high with 10 blocks on the night. On the outside, senior hitter Liz Markovska could not be contained. She converted six kills on nine swings in the first frame, finishing the match with 17 kills, five blocks, and eight digs. Auburn as a team hit .237 in the opener, comfortably outpacing Florida State’s .143 hitting percentage. With 14 kills in the first set alone and only six attack errors, the Tigers built enough separation to take the frame 25-21.
The second set tested Auburn’s poise as Florida State pushed back. The Seminoles found more rhythm offensively, forcing nine ties in the set and threatening to even the match. Still, setters Shanelle Puetz and Kalei Edson kept feeding Markovska, who piled up five more kills in the set. Puetz, who ended the night with 21 assists and 13 digs for her second double-double of the year, distributed the ball with balance, while Edson chipped in 16 assists of her own. At 23-23, the set hung in the balance. That was when Mansfield stepped up again, slamming down a quick kill on a perfect pass to put Auburn ahead. On the next rally, Mansfield and Eden Bower combined for a block that electrified the 1,456 fans in attendance and delivered the Tigers a 25-23 victory.
Florida State entered the third set determined not to go quietly. The Seminoles played from in front for much of the frame, capitalizing on Auburn miscues. They finished the night with 37 kills but committed 25 errors, which dragged their overall hitting percentage down to .103. Auburn countered with service pressure at key moments. Runs led by Grace Havlicek, Lauren Dreves, and Markovska flipped the set. Havlicek, who tallied seven blocks overall, sparked a 5-0 stretch. Dreves added momentum with another run, and Markovska capped the rally by sparking a 4-0 surge that pushed Auburn back in front for good.
Once the Tigers regained control, their block closed the door. Nine more team blocks in the third frame lifted Auburn’s total to 17, the most in a three-set match under head coach Brent Crouch. The Tigers also dominated the defensive back row. Libero Alexis Dacosta led with 15 digs, reaching double figures for the sixth time in seven matches. Puetz contributed 13 digs alongside her setting duties, and Markovska chipped in eight. Auburn outdug Florida State 53-45 overall, limiting the Seminoles to short rallies and few clean scoring opportunities.
Offensively, Auburn finished with 41 kills and a .211 hitting percentage, while Florida State managed only 37 kills on a .103 mark. Zimmerman tied her season high with nine kills, providing a steady second option behind Markovska. Bower added five kills and five blocks, rounding out one of Auburn’s most balanced performances of the season.
Crouch credited his team’s ability to adjust on the fly. “We have made small improvements every match, and tonight was another great example of that. We’ve had very little practice time over the past couple of weeks, so I’ve had to ask them to learn things in matches. Once again, our block was dynamic, and I think you can see how much momentum we get from the crowd noise when we get one. I’ve always said they are worth more than one point. We made a couple of changes in-match, defensively, for some things that were causing us problems but overall, I’m just really impressed by how this team continues to step up for each opponent. Florida State is a very good team. They will cause teams in the ACC a lot of problems. I’m glad we get to play them again on Sunday. I think it will be another great test,” he said after the win. The sweep marked his 75th victory at Auburn, a milestone he called a reflection of his players’ work rather than his own.
The win was Auburn’s second in a row against an ACC opponent and extended a streak of four consecutive matches with double-digit blocks. With a defense that has now held six of seven opponents below .200 hitting, the Tigers proved they are building one of the most disruptive front lines.
Auburn will be facing Florida State once again at 1:00 p.m. CDT on Sunday in Tully Gymnasium, Tallahassee, Fla
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