Alabama volleyball continued its fast start, with a tournament sweep at the Green Wave Classic in New Orleans, Louisiana this weekend. The team maintained its undefeated record, with wins over Tulane, Alabama A&M and Sam Houston.
“There’s going to be more and more pressure on us, there’s always going to be a target on our backs, and it’s all about how we respond,” head coach Rashinda Reed said.
Alabama’s 6-0 win streak is its longest since the 2018 season, setting a hard-to-beat precedent for the Crimson Tide.
Tulane (3-0: 25-22, 26-24, 25-22)
The team had a tough three sets against the Tulane Green Wave, with one set even going into overtime, but the Crimson Tide was able to pull together a 3-0 win. Hitters Alyiah Wells, Kendyl Reaugh and Chaise Campbell scored a combined 32 points, with Wells scoring a season-high 12 kills for the Crimson Tide, leaving her hitting percentage at .423 for this game.
Freshman setter Callie Kieffer managed an impressive 37 sets for the game, allowing the team to put up an impeccable 48 kills against the Tulane Green Wave.
Sydney Gholson, Kieffer, Victoria Schmer and Reaugh all proved that the team is strong not only in offense but in defense as well, digging out 15, 12, 11 and 10 balls, respectively, contributing 48 of Alabama’s 56 digs.
The team had a hard time in this game with more service and hitting errors than usual, which led to the Green Wave almost winning one set in overtime. But the Crimson Tide was able to maintain its lead and keep its win streak alive.
The Green Wave managed to be one of Alabama’s tougher opponents of the season so far, but the team did a good job of maintaining their heads and playing till the very last whistle, which is what secured this win for Alabama.
“I think we’re growing in every game we play,” Reaugh said. “It’s awesome to end this weekend and last weekend going out 3-0, so we’re showing that we’ve made a lot of improvement and getting better with how well we work together. I’m really proud of how everything worked this weekend.”
Alabama A&M (3-0: 25-12, 25-12, 25-11)
The Crimson Tide made an easy win out of Alabama A&M. Sophomore Micah Gryniewicz and freshman Kaleigh Palmer each had more kills than Alabama A&M’s top two hitters combined.
Palmer made her freshman debut in this game, and she made sure to show her devotion to the Crimson Tide by scoring a phenomenal eight kills and one block assist in her first game and scoring 8.5 points. She was only a point and a half behind Campbell and Reaugh, who each scored 9.5 points, and Gryniewicz, who scored 9.
Campbell said that in order to keep the momentum going, the team needs to continue focusing on its play, not the other team’s.
“We just need to remember there is power in ourselves,” Campbell said. “There’s going to be other things that go on and other teams are going to do other things, but I think just leaning on each other and remembering what we’re fighting for together is what’s going to push us through the hard times.”
Sam Houston (3-1: 19-25, 25-22, 25-23, 25-16)
To save the best for last, Alabama faced its toughest opponent yet. Although the Crimson Tide lost its all-around undefeated title, it was able to maintain its undefeated game status.
The first set’s attack errors doubled those of the following three sets, but the team was able to channel in the way it had been for the previous two games and won the match as a whole in an edge-of-your-seat four sets.
“Every team is going to come out there and give us their very best, and so how do you respond to those things.” Reed said. “As a coach you can say those things but as a player they need to feel it, and they felt it. And when you feel it, it brings context to the conversation. There are lessons to be learned from every match, and that was their lesson.”
For the rest of the game, Reaugh had 20 kills, Wells had 13, and Gryniewicz had 12, making this trio responsible for 59% of the team’s kills and helping them to get to their .288 hitting percentage.
Gholson, Reaugh and Schmer led the team in digs with 16, 15 and 10, respectively. In total, the team had 64 digs.
Impressively, Reaugh led the team in points scored with 26 total points over the four sets, followed by Wells and Gryniewicz, who respectively scored 15 and 14 points for the Crimson Tide.
Even though the game started in an unfortunate loss, the Crimson Tide’s ability to stay in high spirits, keep their eyes on a bigger prize and lift each other up created a comeback atmosphere that led to the team’s 3-1 win against the Bearkats and secured its 6-0 win streak.
Next up for the Crimson Tide is the Blazer Classic starting on Sept. 8. Alabama’s first match against Texas A&M Commerce is scheduled for 4 p.m. CT.
