TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama volleyball opened its weekend at Foster Auditorium with a gritty four set win Friday night over Vanderbilt.

Alabama (12-12, 4-10 SEC) was in control for a 25-19 first set win before Vanderbilt (6-17, 2-12 SEC) opened the second set with a 9-3 run. The Crimson Tide clawed its way back to tie the score at 17-17 and after four more tie scores, the Commodores would close out the set with three straight points to win, 25-22, and even the match. Both teams held the lead multiple times in the early stages of set three but a 5-1 run heading into the media timeout pushed Alabama ahead 15-12. Vanderbilt tied the score at 19-19 and 20-20 but a strong push late got the Crimson Tide the 25-21 win to lead the match 2-1. Needing to win the fourth to keep the match alive, the Commodores grabbed the early momentum before Alabama rallied to tie up at 15-15. Later trailing 18-16, a 5-0 run including three kills from Victoria Barrett swung the lead in the Tide’s favor at 21-18. It was a one-point game as late as 22-21 with Vanderbilt serving to tie. A Commodore attack error gave Alabama the ball and a two-point lead, with a kill from Kaleigh Palmer and another Vanderbilt attack error ending it at 25-21 as the Tide got the four-set win.

FROM HEAD COACH RASHINDA REED

“These are the things we’ve been talking about in practice. Our team really stepped it up. They were incredibly relentless and you could tell they wanted this match tonight. Our ladies stepped up in a lot of different areas. Every person pulled their weight on the court. Vic [Barrett] did a really nice job today of mixing shots up, being aggressive at the net and being scrappy on defense.”

NOTES

• The win is Alabama’s fourth conference victory of the season, tied for its most since 2022
• The Tide’s 55 kills are tied for its highest total in SEC play
• Victoria Barrett was just one dig shy of a double-double, leading the team with 17 kills while hitting .452

STAT LEADERS

SET-BY-SET SCORES

• Set 1: Alabama 25, Vanderbilt 19
• Set 2: Vanderbilt 25, Alabama 22
• Set 3: Alabama 25, Vanderbilt 21
• Set 4: Alabama 25, Vanderbilt 21

UP NEXT

• Sunday, Nov. 16 vs. Missouri – Tuscaloosa, Ala. – 2 p.m. CT