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Aug. 31, 2010

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Match Notes

AUBURN, Ala. - Fresh off a successful season-opening weekend, the Auburn volleyball squad is set to entertain Mercer Wednesday night at the Student Activities Center. The undefeated Tigers (3-0) face the Bears (0-4) in a 6 p.m. match and admission is free.

"We're excited for Mercer to come here," head coach Wade Benson said. "We're going to try some different set ups and force some of the new faces to step up. This match will provide that opportunity for us."

Auburn holds a 3-1 series advantage over Mercer with the first-ever meeting coming in 1995, where the Tigers came away with a 3-1 victory. In the two squads' last encounter in 2008, Mercer was on the winning side of a four-set match in Auburn.

SCOUTING MERCER
The Mercer Bears enter Wednesday's match with a 0-4 record after traveling to Seattle for a pair of tournaments this past weekend. The team opened the season with a three-set loss to Eastern Washington on Aug. 27 and then lost in three to Washington. On Aug. 28, the team fell in three sets to Portland State and Seattle University.

Senior middle blocker Krista Hurley leads the Bears early in the season with 28 kills and a .235 attack percentage. Setter Bridget Sheerin has 70 assists on the year, while libero Charlotte Harris leads the squad with 64 digs. The Mercer squad is comprised of three seniors, four juniors, one sophomore and six freshmen.

UP NEXT
The Tigers travel to the Blue Raider Bash in Murfreesboro, Tenn., Sept. 3-5. The Tigers will face four teams during the three-day tournament: Miami, Duke, Middle Tennessee and Southern Miss.

2010 WAR EAGLE INVITE
Auburn opened up the 2010 season strong, capturing its own War Eagle Invitational with three team victories this past weekend. The Tigers kicked off the tournament with a 3-0 win over instate rival Troy Friday evening and followed with a 3-0 victory over UT Martin Saturday afternoon. Auburn concluded the weekend with a 3-1 win over Georgia Southern Saturday night.

Sophomore Sarah Bullock was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player after recording 32 kills and a .492 attack percentage on the weekend. Senior libero Liz Crouch and junior setter Christina Solverson were named to the all-tournament team.

CAREER-BESTS SET
A handful of Tigers had career-best performances this past weekend at the War Eagle Invitational. Senior libero Liz Crouch recorded a career-best five service aces against Troy. Her 25 digs on the weekend also pushed her career-mark to 1,259 total digs, which bumps her second all-time at Auburn.

Senior Lauren Mellor also set a career-best in service aces, tallying four against Troy. Junior setter Christina Solverson recorded a career-high 36 assists in the four-set win over Georgia Southern, while sophomore MacKenzy Harper had a career-best four services aces against the Eagles.

FRESHMEN CONTRIBUTIONS
The 2010 squad welcomes six new faces to Auburn this year in freshmen Caroline Adams, Margaret Clark, Petra Csengeri, Camila Jersonsky, Kathia Rud and Chelsea Wintzinger. Three hail from the United States (Adams, Clark and Wintzinger), while three bring experience from overseas (Csengeri, Jersonsky and Rud).

This past weekend, most were able to see the court and obtain valuable experience early in the season. In Auburn's three-set win over UT Martin on Aug. 28, three freshmen got the starting nod in Jersonsky, Rud and redshirt freshman Sarah Wroblicky. Rud finished with seven kills, while Jersonsky added three kills and a block. Wroblicky led the squad with eight digs and Wintzinger added 16 assists.

"We knew that the UT Martin match was going to be one of those where the young players needed to get the jitters out," Benson said. "Kathia (Rud) did a very nice job for us and Chelseas (Wintzinger) came in and showed no nerves. That match will turn out to be very important in the future for this team."

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