Aug. 29, 2008
ATHENS, Ga. – Freshman Alison Campbell posted 20 kills in her collegiate debut and three other Yellow Jackets tallied double figures in kills as Georgia Tech dropped Georgia, 3-1 (33-31, 25-22, 22-25, 25-22), Friday night in the 2008 season opener at Ramsey Center on Georgia’s campus.
Bailey Hunter and Asia Stawicka notched 10 kills apiece while senior middle Callie Miller added 14 in the opener.
“We are so pleased with the play of our freshmen tonight,” said Georgia Tech head coach Bond Shymansky. “What a difficult environment to open your season and career with, and they responded beautifully, but they certainly couldn’t have done it without the steady play of our seniors.”
Libero Michelle Kandell led Tech’s back row defense with nine digs while Miller, Stawicka and junior Brittany Roderick paced Tech’s blocking efforts on the night.
“Asia’s impact as a rookie middle wasn’t flashy but it was incredibly efficient, and Alison was the complete player for our team this evening,” Shymansky said.
Stawicka’s 10 kills came on 12 errorless attempts as the newcomer hit a match-best .833, while Campell and Miller both hit over .300 on the night.
“I like the balance of our offense, and it’s just the beginning of the Georgia Tech offense of old,” Shymansky said. “We still have kinks to work out, but we are going to be a dynamic team this season.
“I know our team was a little nervous about not having our All-American Talisa Kellogg in the starting lineup, but they shook the nerves and really went in with one purpose as one team tonight.”
The match was just the second that Kellogg has missed in her four-year career at Tech.
With Tech needing just one point to win the first set after taking a 24-19 lead on a kill by Miller, Georgia went on a 6-0 run to gain its first advantage since 13-12 by getting a pair of service aces from Kathleen Gates and a trio of attacking miscues by the Jackets. Five lead changes later, the Jackets received back-to-back kills from Campbell to win, 33-31. Campbell paced the Yellow Jacket offense with eight kills, while Brittany Roderick notched three block assists in the set.
The Jackets used an early 4-1 run, which included a service error by Georgia and a pair of service aces from Michelle Kandell and Stephanie Robbins, to seize control of the second set for good at 7-5. The Bulldogs would finally pull within one point at 23-22 on a kill from Ann Dylla, but Campbell and Miller finished off the set with back-to-back kills to give Tech a 2-0 edge in the match.
Georgia avoided the three-set sweep by posting a 25-22 victory in the third frame. A kill by Campbell gave Tech an 11-10 edge, but the Bulldogs scored four straight points, and six of the next seven, to push the score to 16-12 in their favor.
The Jackets used an 8-0 run in the fourth set to put the match away. Tech hit a remarkable .581 in the frame, posting 14 kills while committing just one error on 24 attempts.
Maria Taylor led four Bulldogs in double figures in kills, posting 19 in Georgia’s season opener.
Georgia Tech will take Saturday off before resuming play in the tournament Sunday at 10 a.m. The Jackets will take on Georgia State at Ramsey Center that morning before closing out the tournament against Furman at 4:30 p.m. Live stats for all matches in the tournament can be found at Georgiadogs.com.
–GT–
