SPORTS NOTEBOOK

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Posted: 10/1/07

Volleyball team rips Rebels, loses to Tigers

Entering the weekend, the Georgia volleyball team had a chance to double its conference win total from a year ago with wins over LSU and Ole Miss - it will have to settle with just passing the mark for now.

After a hard-fought 3-2 win over the Rebels Friday, the Bulldogs (12-4, 3-3) dropped a 3-0 result to the Tigers Sunday.

In the first match, the Bulldogs jumped on the Rebels (13-4, 3-3), winning games one and two 30-28 before the Rebels claimed the next two games.

The Bulldogs won game five to match their conference win total from a year ago.

The Bulldogs then were swept for the first time this season by the 24th-ranked Tigers (13-2, 5-1).

"LSU deserves credit for this win," head coach Joel McCartney said. "Their M.O. is not to tip the ball around and point score, but it worked for them today."

The Bulldogs tried to counter the Tigers' potent middle game with short serves, but the experienced Tigers adjusted and scored points.

"It was part of our game plan to mix it up, we started serving short to jam up their middle game, we slowed up their system," McCartney said. "The problem with that is as we slowed it up, they were able to find ways around our blocks."

The Bulldogs were led by junior Maria Taylor, who racked up 16 kills during the match. Renee Johnson led the team in digs with 14.

Though the Bulldogs were not able to win the game, Taylor said she believes the result will have its benefits.

"We are going to have a new focus and play hard all the time," she said. "We had a lot of peaks where we played real well, but they would get a run against us and we would get kind of down."

Runners' success shines in Oregon

Both cross country teams were in action in Eugene, Ore. over the weekend, with the 15th-ranked women's team managing a fifth-place finish.

The women's field at the Bill Dellinger Invitational consisted of five top-25 teams in addition to the Lady Bulldogs, with senior Kiah Vernon, the top Bulldog, finishing at 16th place in the 6K. Men's runner Ryley Miller led the Bulldogs with a 38th place finish in the 8K.

- Robinns Exume and Tyler Estep