AUBURN, Ala. - The Auburn Tigers picked up a convincing four-set victory (22-25, 25-18, 25-20, 25-20) over the No. 15 Florida State Seminoles Sunday afternoon to remain undefeated on the year, moving to 6-0.
After a tight first set that went the way of the visitors, Auburn turned up the heat, taking the next three behind tremendous defensive play. It was a block party in Neville Arena, with the Tigers totaling 16 team blocks for a new season high, and the most in a game since hosting South Carolina last October.
Freshman middle blocker Emma Moore led the way with eight rejections, while Madison Scheer and Bella Bell followed close behind with seven stuffs of their own. Auburn as a team now ranks first in the SEC with 3.08 blocks per set, while also putting two individuals in the top five in the conference for that stat. Moore and graduate student Chelsey McCurdy both sit in third with 1.35 blocks per set.
It wasn’t just blocks that defined the defensive performance. Freshman Lauren Dreves picked up her first career double-double, tallying 17 digs to go along with her 11 kills. Redshirt junior Peyton Dunn added another double-double, hers coming with 11 digs and 23 assists.
Auburn was also able to stifle a potent FSU attack, holding the Seminoles to a season-low hitting percentage of .124.
The attack also had it working, as three Tigers ended the match with double-digit kills. Scheer led the way with 15, while Dreves and Bell both tallied 11. Auburn came out hot after the first set, hitting a blistering .273 in the second and staying over .200 in sets three and four.
It was an Auburn team that was teeming with confidence and energy leading to the big upset.
“You just have to come out here with confidence,” Dreves said after the win. “You just have to play with confidence, because otherwise teams are going to take advantage of you.”
After falling behind the Seminoles in the all-time series 13-1-1, the Tigers have now rattled off three straight wins against the ACC foes. The trajectory continues upward for Auburn, as they are building a solid argument to be ranked in the next edition of the polls.
Up next for the Tigers is a long stint away from home, as they will travel to Minneapolis to take part in the Diet Coke Classic, and then back down to Birmingham for the Alabama Showdown. Their first match in the Diet Coke Classic will be against another ranked opponent in the form of No. 18 Minnesota. First serve will be at 6 p.m. CT on Friday, September 13.
