With seven Southeastern Conference matches remaining, the LSU volleyball team has a chance this weekend to solidify its place in the conference tournament.
By earning two victories, the Tigers could all but guarantee a spot in the tournament and move closer to the division leaders.
The top eight teams will qualify for tournament play that begins Nov. 21 at Fayetteville. LSU (13-7, 5-4 SEC) currently resides in third place in the SEC West, two and a half games behind division leading Arkansas and one-half game behind Sunday’s opponent Alabama.
“For the rest of the season, we have winnable matches,” said head coach Fran Flory. “If we play at the level we know we are capable of we will have every opportunity to put ourselves in a position to at least share the West championship.”
The stretch drive begins tonight as the Tigers host cellar-dwelling Auburn (1-21, 0-10 SEC) at 7 p.m. in the PMAC.
The young Auburn team allows opposing teams to hit .279, while attacking at only 13 percent. Still searching for its first conference win, the Tigers pushed Alabama to five games last week.
“We cannot underestimate Auburn,” Flory said. “They are playing for pride and nobody wants to go through the SEC winless, and we don’t want to be the one they pick off.”
Alabama (15-9, 6-4 SEC) invades the PMAC Sunday at 2 p.m. coming off a loss to Tennessee. The Crimson Tide features a balanced line up in which three players hit better than 25 percent. Erin Heffner and Jennifer Bibber lead the Tide. Heffner averages 4.6 kills per game and is attacking at a 28 percent pace. Bibber is second on the team with 3.8 kills per game.
“They’re great hitters and if you give them the opportunities they are going to put the ball away,” Flory said.
LSU, winner of three in a row and four of its last five matches, approaches the final weeks of the season with the possibility of being without one of its senior leaders. Middle blocker Lauren Cuyler has been out of action since early October’s three game loss to Alabama.
“We are resting Lauren’s shoulder and she may be able to spot play towards the end of the season,” Flory said.
Freshman Cara Causey has stepped into the starting lineup and is averaging 2.6 kills per game while hitting .275 from her outside hitter position.
“Cara has done a tremendous job starting as a freshman,” Flory said. “We are real balanced with her in the lineup.”
Jennifer Hampton continues to lead the Tiger offense. Hampton averages 3.91 kills per game. Meanwhile Katie Kubina continues to set the table for the LSU hitters. Kubena has 846 assists on the season and 11.5 per game.
After starting its SEC schedule against Eastern Division powers, the Tigers look to maintain their recent momentum. Following this weekend’s action, the Tigers will play their final home game of the season against Kentucky Tuesday night. The remaining four games will be on the road including a rematch against division leading Arkansas. As the season enters its final weeks, the Tigers know that their tournament position can improve.
“We have had the tougher part of our schedule already,” Flory said. “This is where we would like to be because it (Western Division title) is still within our grasp.”