After a promising start, the LSU volleyball team fell to the hands of the Arkansas Lady Razorbacks last night in the first Southeastern Conference match of the season 3-1 in the PMAC.
The Lady ‘Backs won the SEC Western Division last season and are this season’s favorite to repeat as division champions.
“I think this was a golden opportunity given away,” LSU coach Fran Flory said after the game. “They gave us some great opportunities and we did not do a very good job of taking advantage of opportunities.”
LSU came out blistering hot, running up a 12-4 lead on the Lady ‘Backs in the first game of the match. Arkansas used a 7-1 and a 7-2 run to tighten the game and eventually took the lead, 24-23. LSU would tie the game at 27, but Arkansas finished off the Tigers with a 3-0 run to win game one 30-27.
In game two, LSU took an early 5-2 lead. The Lady ‘Backs scored the next four points to take the lead 6-5 and never relinquished it, winning the game 30-24.
Junior Regan Hood led the Tigers with 13 kills, while teammates Megan Heinz and Lauren Leaumont both added six kills to aid the Tigers.
LSU’s best effort came in game three with a hard-fought 31-29 win. Arkansas took a 9-3 lead early and led the Tigers 20-13 late. But the Tigers reeled off a 9-2 run to tie the game at 22. Arkansas led LSU 28-27, but the Tigers used an 8-3 run to finish off the Lady ‘Backs in impressive fashion.
Hood and Heinz paced the Tigers, recording 19 and 12 kills respectively. Freshman Daniela Romero added 26 assists for the Tigers.
“I liked our kids’ fight in game three to come back after being down,” Flory said. “I think we grew up a little bit, and I think we gained some confidence in this match knowing that Arkansas is the favored team in the [SEC] West.”
The fight ended for LSU in game four. The Tigers led early 6-2, and the game would see nine ties and three lead changes before its conclusion. A 6-2 LSU run tied the game at 23, but Arkansas crushed the Tigers momentum and finished the game on a 7-2 run.
The stars for both teams played well in the fourth game. Hood recorded 27 kills, two assists and seven digs in the finale.
For Arkansas, senior Sara Kincaid led the team with 25 kills and three digs.
Arkansas (8-4, 1-0 SEC) won its third match in a row, ending the Tigers two-game winning streak and improving to 17-2 overall against LSU.
“I thought LSU played really hard,” Arkansas coach Chris Poole said after the match. “I thought the biggest difference tonight was the crowd help kind of helped [LSU] get back into it in that game three and they really made a match out of it. LSU never quit.”
LSU (5-8, 0-1 SEC) hosts South Carolina Friday at 7 p.m. at the PMAC.
Flory said she was disappointed in the team for playing not to lose rather than to win. But she said the Tigers should use the game as a momentum builder as LSU gets further into SEC play.
“I think this can be a big confidence boost for us actually,” Flory said. “Arkansas has come on our court the last couple of years and taken it to us. I think we earned some respect from them, and I think we earned a little bit more confidence in ourselves.”