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Olivia Sayer
The UGA volleyball team cheers during the volleyball match between Georgia and Auburn at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens, Georgia on Oct. 27, 2023. (Photo/Laney Martin;@LaneyMartinPhotography)
Georgia volleyball swept Alabama in three sets last Sunday afternoon at Stegeman Coliseum in front of a season-high crowd.
“I thought the team did well,” head coach Tom Black said. “I thought we responded well from the other match and made some of the improvements we talked about, so there are a lot of positives from today.”
Similar to the match that preceded it, the offense was fueled by senior Sophie Fischer and graduate Erica Staunton, who recorded 13 and 11 kills, respectively. On the defensive side, junior Bailey Cox recorded a season-high 19 digs, while Fischer put up a team-high two blocks.
Junior setter Clara Brower tallied 32 assists, while redshirt-freshman Ana Julia Bleeker recorded four of Georgia’s six aces.
Georgia quickly established its presence in the first set, going up 5-0 behind Bleeker’s dominating serving run. Alabama quickly found its rhythm to cut the lead to 8-7, but Georgia bounced back in resounding fashion. After the Bulldogs took seven of the next nine points, a Bleeker ace gave the Bulldogs a 15-9 lead.
With Georgia nearing set point, the Crimson Tide won five straight points to cut the lead to one, 22-21. Georgia ended up winning it 25-23 after Staunton’s four kills in the set.
The second set was slightly more stressful for the home team, as Georgia found itself down 10-6 early. With the Crimson Tide controlling momentum, the Bulldogs took three points to cut Alabama’s lead to one. However, the Crimson Tide matched, winning three straight points of their own. After a couple of errors by Alabama, Georgia tied the set at 14.
A kill by graduate Kacie Evans gave Georgia its first lead of the set, 16-15. Deadlocked at 16, the Bulldogs’ offense proved to be the difference maker, as Georgia won nine of the last 11 points to win the set 25-18.
“I think that our team today, we showed a lot of grit,” Brower said. “I think defensively, that was a huge focus going into this game, was we really wanted to challenge ourselves to see how many more balls we can dig and how our defense can really put up behind our block.”
Needing one more win to secure its second-straight conference victory, the Georgia offense went back to work. Leading 10-4, The Bulldogs used a 3-0 run to fight off the Crimson Tide’s comeback attempt and secure a 18-12 lead. Georgia never let up, as it won the third set 25-19 and the match 3-0.
The victory improved the Bulldogs to 17-11 and 8-8 in conference play.
“It’s tunnel vision right now,” Black said. “You’ve got to maximize the day. Look at a match and take care of it, and I think the team is pretty focused. It’s just about conquering the day before you.”