Alabama volleyball suffered another loss Sunday this time at the hands of the Arkansas Razorbacks. But something good did come out of this game: The team was able to recover one set, making its second victorious set in its SEC season.
The team experienced one of its poorest hitting percentages of the season. The second set even dipped into the negatives with a staggering -.040, while both the first and third sets remained at an even .000. However, the team managed to stage a remarkable comeback in the third set, achieving an impressive percentage of .367 and securing a one-set win for the Crimson Tide over the SEC’s No. 1 team. Combined, these four sets left the team at a .086 percentage, one of its lowest of the season.
The team has consistently played right alongside some of the best teams in the country, including Florida, Missouri and now Arkansas, but it seems to fall apart right when the stakes are highest. This is something middle blocker Chaise Campbell finds frustrating.
“ I think that’s the biggest takeaway for all of us, honestly, that we are so close,” Campbell said. “We are competing with these big teams like Florida, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, all of them. We are in it and we’re competing. So, I mean, that’s just something that we’ll take into practice and we’ll work on.”
Alabama went to overtime with both Florida and Missouri and even won a set against Kentucky and now again against Arkansas, just the thing the team needed to revitalize its spirits, but then unfortunately went 13-25 in the next set against the Razorbacks. Libero Victoria Schmer said this didn’t surprise her, because although the team is competitive, so is everyone else in the SEC.
“Every team in the conference, no matter if they’re at the top or the bottom, are at a high level and they are elite. It’s just a battle of the best,” Schmer said. “So in those moments, I’m not surprised that we’re competing with them, but we just have to put the moments together a little bit better.”
Middle blocker Zoi Evans of Arkansas led her team with a .778 hitting percentage, along with middle blocker Sania Petties and outside hitter Taylor Head, who had a .412 and .361, respectively. These three made the game tough for Alabama’s defense. With only one block solo from outside hitter Kendyl Reaugh and six block assists from setter Gabbi LeBlanc, middle blockers Alyiah Wells and Campbell, and outside hitter Kaleigh Palmer, the defense was left scrambling.
Reaugh and Schmer led the team with a combined 24 digs, while LeBlanc, defense specialists Francesca Bertucci and Sydney Gholson, and outside hitter Sami Jacobs each had five, leading to Alabama’s 47 total digs.
Reaugh took the lead in service aces for the team, securing two, closely followed by Gholson with one. The team struggled with serving, but its 10 service errors were offset by Arkansas’s 13.
Head coach Rashinda Reed said the Crimson Tide is kept alive by its ability to fight and stick to its game until the very end, but that unforced errors like service errors need to be worked on for the team to thrive.
“We continue to fight. I mean, it wasn’t pretty, but we’re really still sticking in the game,” Reed said. “That’s something that I’m most proud of, and like I said, it’s just managing these unforced errors. I feel like we just need to clean those things up.”
Despite the loss, the team continues to make progress and is still striving for its wins. The team will play on the road again this Wednesday at 6 p.m. CT against the South Carolina Gamecocks.
