BATON ROUGE, The. – The LSU Volleyball team defeated Samford 25-14, 25-20, 25-20) to open the season Friday morning at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center (PMAC).
LSU (1-0) hit .320 in the match behind 46 kills and recorded a team-high nine blocks and four aces while holding Samford (0-1) to a .108 hitting percentage. With the win, the Tigers improve to 39-8 in home starts since 1976 and are 5-1 in their last six home starts.
Outside hitter Sanaa Dotson finished with a double-double as she led the Tigers with 15 kills and finished with 11 digs. Right side Hannah Jacobs and outside hitter Samarah Hill followed with eight kills each. Middle blockers Anita Anwusi and Alia Williams paced the defense with four blocks each and libero Ella Larkin had a match-high 12 digs.
Set 1
- LSU jumped out to a 12-5 lead to force a Bulldog timeout.
- The Tigers’ run continued down the other end of the period as they used a 6-0 burst to build a 16-5 lead.
- Samford scored five of the next seven points, forcing LSU to use the first timeout with an 18-10 lead.
- The Tigers answered and took a 21-11 lead before Samford burned the final timeout.
- LSU went on to win the set 25-14, led by Jacobs’ five kills and one block. Anwusi followed with four kills and two blocks.
Set 2
- The Tigers jumped out to a 3-0 lead, but Samford came back and took a 9-8 advantage to pressure LSU’s halftime.
- LSU came back scoring the next three points and despite a Bulldog timeout, the home team held on and scored seven unanswered points for a 15-9 lead.
- Samford fought back and took a 20-19 lead after a 6-1 run. However, LSU closed out the frame on a 5-0 run to win the set 25-20. Dotson recorded three kills in that 5-0 stretch and finished with nine kills in the set and a .278 hitting percentage.
Set 3
- The Bulldogs grabbed an early 6-2 lead and led 11-8 before the Tigers used their first timeout of the set.
- LSU fought back and took a 16-14 lead to force Samford into a timeout. The Tigers took off from there as they forced another Bulldog timeout 22-19 and won the set 25-20.
The next one
LSU will return to the floor at 7:30 p.m. and close out opening day with a contest against Houston.
Season tickets for the 2022 LSU volleyball season are now available. Fans interested in becoming a season ticket holder can get more information by clicking here. All tickets will be distributed via mobile devices for faster delivery of tickets to fans, contactless transactions at the gate and more flexibility for ticket holders. For more information on mobile tickets click here.
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