The LSU volleyball team stayed one game ahead of Arkansas for the lead in the Southeastern Conference Western Division after posting a 1-1 record this weekend, losing Friday to Florida and defeating South Carolina on Sunday.
LSU’s results (18-9, 11-6 SEC) were mirrored by Arkansas, which defeated South Carolina on Friday and fell Sunday to Florida.
It looked as though LSU might end up even with the Razorbacks (18-10, 10-7 SEC) when the Tigers dropped the first two sets to the Gamecocks before surging and taking the next three, 25-21, 25-23 and 15-6.
“It’s really important for us to change our mentality when we’re down two sets,” said junior defensive specialist Meghan Mannari, who recorded a career- and match-high 39 digs. “You’ve got to take control of the match and play our game, our side, our pace, and that’s what we did in those last m a day before, which went in to halftime with only a 14-7 lead against Western Kentucky but blew the game open in the second half for a 42-9 win./p
“We were flat, a little bit like the football team yesterday,” span data-scayt_word=”Flory” data-scaytid=”11″Flory/span said. “When their backs were against the wall, they figured out a way. … That’s the sign of a team that’s maturing and has a lot of span data-scayt_word=”confidence.”” data-scaytid=”12″>confidence.”
The Tigers took the first set Friday against Florida (21-5, 14-3 SEC), but the Gators rallied behind a record-setting performance by sophomore middle blocker Chloe Mann to win the last three, 14-25, 21-25 and 12-25, en route to victory.
Mann posted a .900 hitting percentage, with 18 kills on 20 swings and no errors, setting the highest percentage in SEC history and second highest in NCAA history for an attacker recording 20 or more swings in a single match.
“We had no answer for her,” Flory said. “The key was that she wasn’t predictable. She hit right, she hit left, she tipped and she had a knack for picking the right shot at the right