The Alabama volleyball team moved up to an 11-1 record after defeating the Samford Bulldogs 3-1 Tuesday night.

The Tide had a rough start, losing the first set 23-25, but the team stepped up in the final three sets, winning 25-16, 25-13 and 25-14, ultimately giving them the victory.

“We stepped back to the line and put a lot of pressure on their serve-receive, and they weren’t able to handle that pressure,” head coach Ed Allen said. “We stepped back, served aggressively, and they weren’t able to run their middles, and they are a middle-driven team.”

With multiple players performing well, Allen believes he may have finally found his starting lineup.

“We’ve had about seven different lineups in the preseason,” Allen said. “Steiner is kind of settling into that other outside hitting position, which is giving us a lot more consistency, and we do have balance – we have four kids that should be putting up multiple digit kills, and Sierra does a great job of spreading the ball around.”

Alabama had an average hitting percentage of .328 and multiple girls had double digit kills.

Kayla Fitterer was the strongest of the night, posting 17 kills, 16 digs and a .359 hitting percentage. Maintaining focus and poise was a key to her success, as well as her teammates’.

“After the first game, losing, we just came back and stayed steady,” senior Kayla Fitterer said. “Over this weekend, winning 4-0 gave us confidence going into this game and just playing with each other more and more. We are all new girls, so playing every day together is making us better.”

Andrea McQuaid and Laura Steiner also posted impressive stats in the victory. McQuaid finished with 11 kills and a hitting percentage of .391, while Steiner ended the night with 14 kills in 37 attempts.

Setter Sierra Wilson finished the night with 44 assists. Sophomore Katherine White also posted a .545 hitting percentage and seven kills.

Now the team is looking ahead to Friday night, when it will take on the LSU Tigers.