Despite a few glimmers into Auburn’s potential complexion under new head coach Brent Crouch, the Tigers were unable to get a season opening victory. The fourth-ranked Florida Gators showed that they belonged in the upper-echelon of SEC volleyball programs and got the sweep against the Tigers tonight.
Any late game comeback attempts by the Tigers were stifled by the Gators stellar defensive effort on the net tonight. The Gators finished with 9 blocks off the net, with T’ara Ceasar leading her team with 5 blocks of her own. Ceaser also led the Gators offensively, finishing with 16 of Florida’s 44 points and having an eye-popping .364 attack percentage.
Auburn was only able to score more than 14 points one of their three sets, by scoring 20 in the final stretch. The Tigers finished with a low .009 attack percentage, having four different players with a negative personal attack percentage statistics. Chesney McClellan lead the team with a solid .286%, also finishing with the second most points on the team with 7 behind Val Green’s 10. Auburn was also ravaged by errors on both sides of the ball, doubling Florida’s 12 errors with 26 of their own.
Auburn will look to bounce back tomorrow and even up the season opening series against the Gators. Coach Brent Crouch will be looking for his first win of his Auburn career tomorrow and potentially spoil the Gator’s series sweep hopes.
