University of Georgia Athletics
Bulldogs Fall To No. 13 LSU In Baton Rouge
September 24, 2006 | Volleyball
In the match's third game, the Bulldogs (4-10, 0-4 SEC) came from behind late in the game and twice tied the game - once at 28 and then at 29 - before LSU (12-1, 3-0), who claimed their 10th straight victory on Sunday, clinched its win.
"The positive thing is that we are not letting up," said Georgia head coach Steffi Legall. "LSU had more weapons than we had answers and this one really turned into a defensive battle. We did have stretches of good serving and blocking."
Freshman Nikki Hawkins, who went into Sunday's match No. 10 on the SEC's assists per game list, registered a double-double with 18 assists and 15 digs to go along with a team-leading nine kills. Legall said Hawkins, who finished with a hitting percentage of .368, was one of her team's leaders against LSU.
"She had some opportunities to get some kills today and took advantage of that," said Legall, who also saw sophomore Maria Taylor tally seven kills and 10 digs against the Tigers. "I think Nikki played a solid match."
Legall said the Bulldogs were "excited to be back at home" this week after the team's "long and tiring road trip" to Arkansas and LSU. After leaving for the Arkansas airport at 8 a.m. on Saturday morning following their Friday night match versus the Razorbacks, the Bulldogs' flight did not depart until 4 p.m. Once in air, the flight had to be re-routed to Cincinnati and Georgia did not arrive in Baton Rouge until 9:30 p.m. on Saturday night.
Georgia returns home this week to face South Carolina (9-6, 2-2) on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. and Alabama (7-6, 2-2) on Friday night at 7 p.m.
Live stats for both home matches this week will be available on georgiadogs.com.