University of Georgia Athletics
Friday, September 28
Oxford, Miss
7 p.m.
University of Georgia
3
at
0
Ole Miss
Photo by: Lauren Tolbert
Georgia Earns First SEC Road Win with Sweep of Rebels
September 28, 2018 | Volleyball
OXFORD, Miss. – Georgia volleyball (11-4, 2-1) picked up its first road win of Southeastern Conference play with a sweep of Ole Miss (10-6, 0-2) Friday evening in Oxford (26-24, 25-18, 28-26).
"Our serving put a lot of pressure on the other side of the net and our offense picked up a ton after the first set," said head coach Tom Black. "We still have lots to work on but we're getting better. We'll rest up and get back to work tomorrow."
Rachel Ritchie recorded 16 kills, a season high for a three-set match this season. The sophomore hit .400 in the match and tied a career-best three services aces. Friday is the first time this season Ritchie has solely led the Bulldogs in kills.
T'ara Ceasar finished with 11 kills and fell a dig short of a double-double with nine digs. Freshman Mallory Hernandez tipped the double-digit mark at 10 kills with a .429 hitting clip.
Setter Meghan Donovan dished out 44 assists, a season high in three sets, while running an offense that hit .297 against the Rebels. During the match, Donovan recorded her 3,000th-career assist. She becomes only the seventh Bulldog to reach the 3,000-assist mark in Georgia history.
The match opened with a hotly-contested first set, one that featured 14 ties and eight lead changes. The Bulldogs and Rebels opened the match going point-for-point. Georgia led by as much as four at 17-13 but it wasn't long before Ole Miss worked to eventually take a 22-21 lead, forcing Georgia to use its final timeout. Ole Miss called its second timeout after Georgia found a 24-23 lead to draw set point. The Rebels tied it at 24 out of the timeout followed by the Bulldogs taking the next two to wrap up the set, 26-24. Ritchie opened the match with eight kills and an ace while hitting .571 in the opening stanza.
Georgia fell behind early in set two but worked to erase the early deficit and tie the set up at 7-7. The teams began exchanging points. Down two, 12-10, Georgia went on a 7-1 run to open a four-point lead. The Bulldogs built the new lead up to as much as seven at 22-15. Ritchie's 12thkill of the match sealed the deal in the second for Georgia, 25-18, and captured a 2-0 lead in the match. Georgia hit .452 in the second set as a team.
The third set proved the closest and hardest-fought set of the match. The frame featured 21 ties and the lead changed hands 10 times. After beginning point-for-point, Ole Miss went on a 4-0 run to take a 12-9 lead. Georgia won five of the next six points to retake the lead 14-13. Tied back up at 18, three-point runs by Georgia then Ole Miss had the set tied at 21. Tied again at 23, Ole Miss drew its first of three set points. Down 26-25, Georgia went to Hernandez with back-to-back kills to side out and draw match point. A block by Hernandez wrapped up the sweep for Georgia, 28-26.
Georgia returns to Athens for a matchup against South Carolina Sunday afternoon. First serve is slated for 2 p.m. at Stegeman Coliseum.
"Our serving put a lot of pressure on the other side of the net and our offense picked up a ton after the first set," said head coach Tom Black. "We still have lots to work on but we're getting better. We'll rest up and get back to work tomorrow."
Rachel Ritchie recorded 16 kills, a season high for a three-set match this season. The sophomore hit .400 in the match and tied a career-best three services aces. Friday is the first time this season Ritchie has solely led the Bulldogs in kills.
T'ara Ceasar finished with 11 kills and fell a dig short of a double-double with nine digs. Freshman Mallory Hernandez tipped the double-digit mark at 10 kills with a .429 hitting clip.
Setter Meghan Donovan dished out 44 assists, a season high in three sets, while running an offense that hit .297 against the Rebels. During the match, Donovan recorded her 3,000th-career assist. She becomes only the seventh Bulldog to reach the 3,000-assist mark in Georgia history.
The match opened with a hotly-contested first set, one that featured 14 ties and eight lead changes. The Bulldogs and Rebels opened the match going point-for-point. Georgia led by as much as four at 17-13 but it wasn't long before Ole Miss worked to eventually take a 22-21 lead, forcing Georgia to use its final timeout. Ole Miss called its second timeout after Georgia found a 24-23 lead to draw set point. The Rebels tied it at 24 out of the timeout followed by the Bulldogs taking the next two to wrap up the set, 26-24. Ritchie opened the match with eight kills and an ace while hitting .571 in the opening stanza.
Georgia fell behind early in set two but worked to erase the early deficit and tie the set up at 7-7. The teams began exchanging points. Down two, 12-10, Georgia went on a 7-1 run to open a four-point lead. The Bulldogs built the new lead up to as much as seven at 22-15. Ritchie's 12thkill of the match sealed the deal in the second for Georgia, 25-18, and captured a 2-0 lead in the match. Georgia hit .452 in the second set as a team.
The third set proved the closest and hardest-fought set of the match. The frame featured 21 ties and the lead changed hands 10 times. After beginning point-for-point, Ole Miss went on a 4-0 run to take a 12-9 lead. Georgia won five of the next six points to retake the lead 14-13. Tied back up at 18, three-point runs by Georgia then Ole Miss had the set tied at 21. Tied again at 23, Ole Miss drew its first of three set points. Down 26-25, Georgia went to Hernandez with back-to-back kills to side out and draw match point. A block by Hernandez wrapped up the sweep for Georgia, 28-26.
Georgia returns to Athens for a matchup against South Carolina Sunday afternoon. First serve is slated for 2 p.m. at Stegeman Coliseum.
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