MOBILE, Ala. - After dropping a four-set match to Faulkner back in September of this season, the University of Mobile Volleyball team answered back with a four-set win of their own over the Eagles on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 22 in Pharr Gymnasium, snapping a three-match losing streak in the process. Faulkner entered Saturday riding a losing skid of their own, dropping each of the last two matches played. The Eagles saw that losing streak continue with the loss to the Rams.
Additionally, Saturday's conference match was an important one as both teams entered sitting in fourth and fifth place in the SSAC Volleyball standings with the regular season schedule winding down next week. The Rams had a one game edge over Faulkner and extended that to two games following the victory. If Mobile can win out, the Rams will at the least be the four-seed of the upcoming SSAC Volleyball Championship Tournament in Montgomery, Ala.
Offense Not Consistent, But Gets Job Done
In front of a large crowd for UM Homecoming 2022, the Rams hosted the Eagles of Faulkner looking to avenge their previous loss in Montgomery. Mobile came out of the gate with a 25-21 set one victory and hit a solid .341 as a team in the process. However, the hitting percentage took a dip in set two, which eventually allowed Faulkner to claim the set two win by the same score at 21-25. In set three, both teams traded the lead back and forth before Mobile prevailed with the set three win, 25-21. The offense improved in set three, hitting in the .230s. Finally, set four saw the Rams come away with the win, fighting off a late Faulkner rally. Mobile took the set 25-22 and earned their 17th win of the season, improving to 17-9 overall and 9-5 in SSAC action.
As a team offensively, Mobile took 166 total attack attempts compared to Faulkner's 156. The Rams hit only .169 as a unit across the four sets, tallying 51 kills and 23 attack errors. Faulkner managed 49 kills and 26 errors.
Freshman Corrina Porch-Maxey had a nice bounce back match on the offensive side for Mobile, leading the Rams with 15 kills and hitting .225. Porch-Maxey spoke with the Sports Information department pregame about wanting to use Saturday's match against Faulkner as a turnaround match on the offensive end. She was the lone Ram to tally double-digit kill totals as she continues to lead the team in kills on the season.
Both Aleah Kennedy and Brinkley Hearn put together great offensive displays against Faulkner, with both players finishing with eight kills each on the afternoon. In addition to their eight kills, both Kennedy and Hearn added a hitting percentage north of .360 as Kennedy led the team with a .375 mark and Hearn finishing with a .368 hitting percentage.
Abby Andrews surpassed the 200-kill plateau on the season during Saturday's match, also finishing with eight kills. Andrews is now just 12 kills away from recording 1,000 kills in her collegiate career, a mark that looks promising to happen in the Rams' next two matches.
In head coach Jon Campbell's 6-2 offense, Tatum Beech and Layton Adams once again led the way in the assists category, with Beech tallying 24 and Adams recording 20. Additionally, Beech was third on the team alongside Abby Andrews with eight defensive digs and Madison Bergeron finished second-highest on the club with nine digs.
Freshman libero Lexi Gillette was outstanding on the back line for Mobile, finishing the four-set winner with a match-high and season-high 27 digs. In the win, Gillette surpassed 300 digs and brought her total on the season to a team-high 321. Gillette's previous high in a match was 22 digs twice earlier on the year.
Current Home Stand Continues
Mobile will be back in action with their final non-conference match of the season next Tuesday, Oct. 25 in Pharr Gymnasium as the Rams play host to the Pensacola Christian College Eagles for a 7:00 p.m. CT match. Mobile swept PCC earlier in the season in Pensacola, Fla.
About the University of Mobile
The University of Mobile is a Christ-centered liberal arts and sciences institution with a vision of higher education for a higher purpose, founded to honor God by equipping students for their future professions through rigorous academic preparation and spiritual transformation. Core values are: Christ-Centered, Academically-Focused, Student-Devoted and Distinctively-Driven. The university offers on-campus and online bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in over 75 academic programs. Founded in 1961, the University of Mobile is affiliated with the Alabama Baptist State Convention and is located 10 miles north of Mobile, Alabama on a campus of over 880 acres.
For information about the University of Mobile, areas of study, admissions and more, visit umobile.edu, connect with UM on social media @univofmobile, or call Enrollment Services at 1.800.WIN.RAMS or 251.442.2222.
