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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
LSU
Rebels Shut Out No. 12 Tigers In SEC West Showdown
10/15/2010 | Volleyball
Oct. 15, 2010
OXFORD, Miss. -- With the edge in the race for the SEC Western Division on the line Friday night, it was the Rebels who responded in a big way as Ole Miss (13-5, 7-2 SEC) shut out No. 12 LSU (17-2, 8-2 SEC) by a score of 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-18).
The win pulled the Rebels within a half game of LSU who has played one more game in conference play than Ole Miss. It also snapped a 34-match win streak over Western Division foes for the Tigers, who hadn't lost since the Rebels took down then 11th-ranked LSU in the season finale of 2006.
The 3-0 win is the fourth-consecutive shutout for the Rebels who will face Arkansas at home on Sunday.
"This was a great team win for us tonight," said Ole Miss head coach Joe Getzin. "We executed our game plan very well. We limited our errors and let our defense put the pressure on them. Allegra Wells continues to mature as a player and has been so consistent with her play. Our middles continue to hit for a high percentage.
"Morgan Springer did a phenomenal job of managing our team from the libero position with her play on the back row," Getzin said. "Regina Thomas really has stepped into a leadership role and let her actions speak for her. She keeps rising to the occasion."
The Rebels rose to the occasion Friday night as Thomas hit .444 for the match after entering the night ranked ninth-nationally in hitting percentage. She also put down five blocks in the match. Allegra Wells hit a season-high .471 with nine kills on 17 swings to tie sophomore Whitney Craven for the team-high in kills.
Amanda Philpot put down eight kills and came up with thee blocks to go along with 26 assists from the setter position, while Springer added a 12 digs to lead the back row defense.
The Rebels out-blocked the Tiges 8.0 to 6.0 and held LSU to a season-low .111 hitting percentage.
Ole Miss attacked quickly, jumping out of the gates and grabbing a 7-2 lead to start the opening set. The lead grew from there, with the Rebels holding on to an eight point lead at 15-7 at the first timeout of the frame. LSU would respond, making a run at the Rebels and tying the set at 20 before a Tiger attack error and a service ace from Ashley Veach put Ole Miss back on top by two.
The Rebels closed things out from there, taking the first set 25-21.
Ole Miss raced out of the gates again to open the second set, claiming a 6-1 lead on the Tigers
as consecutive blocks and a kill from Philpot sent LSU to the bench for a timeout. The lead swelled to 10-3 from there before the Tigers would put together another run that trimmed the lead to three at 13-10.
The Rebels responded with a run of their own to push back out to a 17-11 lead and send LSU back to the bench in another attempt to regroup. It didn't work as the Rebels maintained the edge on the way to a 25-18 win in the second set.
LSU snagged the first point of the third set, but it was for naught as Ole Miss again strung together a run that took the Rebels in front 5-2. The Tigers would cut the lead to as little as one twice at 10-9 and 11-10, but never managed to pull even as Ole Miss maintained the lead for the duration and claimed the match with a 25-18 win in the third set.
Ole Miss returns to action on Sunday when the Rebels host the Arkansas Razorbacks at 1:30 p.m. at the Gillom Sports Center. Admission is free to the public.
