Offensive explosion propels A&M volleyball to sweep over Georgia
Returning home after a road sweep of the Mississippi schools, Texas A&M Volleyball (14-5, 6-3) swept the Georgia Bulldogs (15-5, 7-2), the previous top team in the SEC. This victory marks a three-game win streak for the Aggies and adds to their 7-1 home record.
Set One: Texas A&M 25-16
The beginning of the set was kept close by back-and-forth kills from each team until the midway points. The Aggies began to run away with the lead after an ace from Makena Patterson to go up 12-10. Three other Aggies, including Hollann Hans, Camille Conner, and Allison Fields recorded aces in the set. Treyaunna Rush slammed down one of her three kills to put the Aggies up 21-14 during the run, ultimately tying with Hans and Lauren Davis for team-high kills. Texas A&M claimed set one 25-16 on a .250 kill percentage, holding the Bulldogs to just .040.
Set Two: Texas A&M 25-20
The Aggies were able to finish off a close set, consisting of thirteen ties, with a score of 25-20 to take the match lead. The Bulldog offense improved from the previous set with a .200 kill percentage but came nowhere near to the Aggies’.351. Texas A&M gained momentum at the right time, pulling away at the 20-point mark with an offense led by the unstoppable Hans. Four of the team’s last six points were earned by Hans, her last at set point with an ace to put the Aggies up 2-0 in the match. Hans and Rush led the Aggies with five kills each in the set.
Set Three: Texas A&M 25-21
Texas A&M maintained a close lead throughout set three, seeing four ties but never giving the Bulldogs an opportunity to go ahead. Knotted at fifteen, Patterson quickly answered the tie with two straight points to ensure the Aggie advantage going into the final points. Hans served an ace to put the Aggies up 24-21 at set point, her fourth of the day. Texas A&M quickly claimed the 25-21 set victory and match sweep. The Aggie offense was impressive throughout the game and continued to improve, totaling a hitting percentage of .378 in the final set. Freshman opposite hitter Rush totaled ten kills, her new career-high.
Postgame Thoughts
“Coming back home after being on the road and beating a very good Georgia team 3-0, we executed at a high level. It was better than we’ve been all week. I’m more impressed with the offense since we struggled so much on the road last week. I’m very proud of how they executed today. They were very intentional with their shots and the block opened up,” said head coach Laura “Bird” Kuhn.
Rush, coming off a career high performance, said, “We knew we had to beat [Georgia]. We didn’t think about them being number one in the SEC, we just knew this game was important. It’s in the back of my mind that I need to step up for the team. I want to continue to be better.”
“We knew they were going to come stronger in sets two and three so we worked harder. We worked a lot during the week on approach and defense. We were connected and it worked out,” said senior libero Camila Gomez.
Up Next
The Aggies hit the road for a matchup against Kentucky on Friday at 6 p.m. and return home Sunday to host Missouri at 2 p.m.