Alabama
19-12, 6-11SEC
Texas A&M
16-13, 9-8SEC
Alabama Falls to Texas A&M, 3-0, Wednesday Night in Tuscaloosa
11/21/2018 9:01:00 PM | Volleyball
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama dropped a three-set decision to Texas A&M Wednesday night in Foster Auditorium, falling by set scores of 23-25, 25-27 and 18-25.
Alabama (19-12, 6-11 SEC) was stymied offensively, hitting .158 as a team while Texas A&M (16-13, 9-8 SEC) posted a .318 clip. Sophomore Doris Carter led the team with nine kills, with senior Cidavia Hall and juniors Ginger Perinar and Hayley McSparin tallying six each. With one match remaining in the regular season, senior Quincey Gary is third all-time at Alabama with 1,455 digs after posting 11 against the Aggies.
An early 4-0 run helped Texas A&M jump ahead to a 5-2 lead but Alabama fought back to tie it up at 10-10 off a kill from Carter. A service ace from sophomore Kaylee Thomas on the next rally gave the Tide the lead and back-to-back kills made it 13-10 at the halfway mark. Alabama held a one-point advantage at the media timeout, 15-14, but Texas A&M soon moved back ahead at 17-16 and remained in front, with the Tide calling a timeout down 22-20. Alabama took its second timeout when Texas A&M reached set point, 24-22. A kill from Perinar made it a one-point game but the Aggies sealed the victory on the next rally, winning 25-23.
Alabama scored the first point of set number two, but Texas A&M responded with four unanswered points. The Tide took its first timeout soon after, trailing 8-3, and rebounded with a 5-1 run to draw within one. Back-to-back service aces from McSparin eventually moved the Tide in front 12-11 but the Aggies quickly moved back ahead with three-straight points to lead 14-12. Trailing 17-16, Alabama tallied four-straight to move ahead 19-17 and Texas A&M took its first team timeout. Three-straight points after the break swung momentum back to the Aggies and the Tide took its second timeout trailing 20-19. Texas A&M reached set point first, 24-23, but Alabama scored back-to-back to lead 25-24 and the Aggies called their final timeout. Texas A&M scored three straight to close out the set, winning 27-25 to take a 2-0 match advantage.
After five tie scores early in the third set, Texas A&M added some distance approaching the halfway mark, leading 12-8 after a three-point run as Alabama took a timeout. The Tide would draw within one point four times before a 3-0 run put the Aggies in front 19-15 and Alabama spent its final timeout. The Tide would only score three points in the remainder of the set, falling 25-18 as the Aggies earned the sweep.
Alabama wraps up the regular season at home against Arkansas Friday, Nov. 23 at 7 p.m. CT.
