by Matt Dunaway, Associate Sports Information Director
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Brittnee Cooper slapped 18 kills and added seven blocks as the No. 19 LSU volleyball team notched a gritty 3-2 victory over Arkansas [25-18, 27-25, 14-25, 21-25, 15-10] Sunday at Barnhill Arena.
Cooper’s 18 kills allowed her to become the 16th player in program history to eclipse 1,000 career kills. The Tigers have had a trio of players join this illustrious list over the last three seasons.
“Brittnee was very effective, but we couldn’t get the ball to her as often as we wanted to,” head coach Fran Flory said. “Our team did a great job of battling back and Cooper led the way for us.”
LSU (20-5, 14-2 SEC) has won 12 of its last 13 matches and improved to 16-4 in five-set decisions against unranked opponents since the 2007 season. The Tigers also extended its winning streak to 28 matches over SEC Western Division foes.
Sam Dabbs distributed 46 assists and set the Tigers to a .389 hitting percentage in the fifth set. She also tacked on seven kills and six digs.
Arkansas (11-15, 5-10 SEC) was fueled by Jasmine Norton, who turned a solid all-around effort with a career-best 29 kills to go along with 17 digs, six blocks and four aces.
“We finally got on track in the fifth set, but you have to credit Arkansas,” Flory said. “They pressured us and the biggest problem was we didn’t have an answer for Norton. She was unbelievable and we couldn’t stop her.”
Marina Skender recorded 11 kills to go along with 11 digs and five blocks en route to her team-leading 11th double-double of the season. Angela Bensend chipped in 10 kills, while Michele Williams recorded nine kills and four blocks.
Lauren DeGirolamo matched a career-high with 16 digs. She also contributed a complete performance with five kills, six blocks and six assists. Lauren Waclawczyk tallied 17 digs and added three assists.
LSU raced out to 9-3 lead in set five as Dabbs passed out helpers to Bensend, DeGirolamo, Skender and Williams coupled with a trio of Arkansas miscues. The Razorbacks drew back to 12-9 before the Tigers regrouped with three of the final four points after a timeout. Bensend provided a pair of critical sideout spikes, while Cooper and Skender paired for the clinching block to secure the 15-10 triumph.
“I thought Angela was the key,” Flory said. “She came through for us in the big situations and was the difference maker in the match that provided the key play when we needed to have it the most.”
“Our first contact was off for most of the match, but we got back in system in the fifth set,” Waclawczyk said. “We weren’t communicating and coach [Flory] told us we needed to open our months. We saw a huge change, and I think it’s a lesson learned on our part.”
LSU racked up four blocks, three involving DeGirolamo, to grab a 7-5 edge in the early stages of the opening set. The Razorbacks responded with seven of the next 10 points aided by three LSU attack errors to go up 12-10. LSU fired back with a 10-4 spurt of its own capped by a DeGirolamo kill to surge ahead 20-16. Arkansas sliced the deficit within two points on three occasions, the latest at 24-22, before a Dabbs dump gave the Tigers a 25-22 victory.
Four different Razorbacks picked up multiple kills highlighted by three kills apiece from Norton and Kristin Seaton allowed Arkansas to build a 15-9 advantage to start set two. LSU chipped away and caught the Razorbacks at 18-18 after back-to-back Bensend and Cooper spikes followed by consecutive Arkansas attack errors. After six ties and three lead changes, LSU fought off two set points. At 26-25, Williams connected for a transition spike for the 27-25 win.
The two teams went back and forth to start the third set. At 12-10, Arkansas used a 13-4 finishing kick to pull away for the 25-14 victory. Norton belted seven kills and the Razorbacks converted on 13-of-15 sideout attempts in the frame.
The Razorbacks continued to ride Norton in set four. Arkansas grabbed a 17-12 edge and forced LSU to burn both of its timeouts. The Tigers charged back to 20-18 before Norton saved two of her seven spikes for the stretch run to close out the 25-21 win.
LSU opens the second leg of its four-match road swing Friday at No. 9 Florida. First serve is scheduled for 6 p.m. and live stats will be available on LSUsports.net.
The match also will be televised by Fox Sports Net Florida. It has yet to be determined if CST or FSN will pick up the match in the Baton Rouge area. Fans can follow in-match updates of the five-time SEC Western Division champions via www.twitter.com/lsuvolleyball.
