WASHINGTON - The American University volleyball team (6-6) put up a battle against SEC foe Ole Miss (8-3) in front of a Blue Out crowd on Saturday, but fell to the Rebels, 3-1.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Junior Olivia Wassner helped lead the Eagles with her third double-double of the season, posting a game-high 47 assists while picking up a dozen digs.
• Senior Aleksandra Sochacka paced AU's attack, though, with a season-best 20 kills and only three errors for a .425 hitting percentage. Junior Helena Elbaek also hit double-figures with a dozen kills.
• Senior Kristen Largay led on the defensive end with 17 digs.
• The Eagles had their second-highest blocking performance of the season with nine total behind five from senior Jeanne Westney and four from Sochacka and freshman Asli Celikkol.
• American led Ole Miss in hitting percentage, .265 to .234, and assists, 53-46, but the Rebels held the advantage in digs, 67-44. Both teams struggled on the service, though, as the Rebels walked away with 26 errors and the Eagles' 20.
• AU came out strong in the first set, taking advantage of a series of Ole Miss errors to pick up a quick 4-0 lead. The Rebels tied the set up at 16-16 after a 4-0 run of their own, but couldn't hold on to the momentum as more attack errors and a pair of kills from Sochacka and Celikkol closed the first at 25-18.
• The Rebels found their footing in the second set, though, after a 6-1 run put them up 10-4. The Eagles chipped away at the lead, eventually tying the set at 19-19 despite a series of service errors midway through. A pair of kills from Wassner put AU ahead for the first time in the set at 21-20, but Ole Miss responded to knot the score briefly before a pair of points from Sochacka seemed to put AU in position to take the set. Back-to-back American errors pulled the Rebels even once again at 24-24 to send the set into extra points before an ace from Nayo Warnell and kill from Emily Stroup delivered Ole Miss the set, 26-24.
• It was a similar story in the third set, as Ole Miss took control early to pick up a six-point lead at 13-7. Kills from Sochacka kept the Eagles' within striking distance but they couldn't break past a four-point margin and an AU service error closed the set at 25-20.
• The back-and-forth battle resumed in the fourth set as the squads broke even 17 times and changed leads five times. Once again, it was Sochacka along with Westney who paced the Eagles with four kills each, followed by three from Elbaek and freshman Onuchi Ndee. Six of the 17 ties came down the stretch, starting with the 20-20 mark after a Wassner kill pulled the Eagles back up alongside the Rebels. Hits from Sochacka, Westney, and Elbaek continued to pull AU ahead, but Ole Miss had a response every time, and eventually sent the set into extra points after kills from Stroup and Leah Mulkey pulled the Rebels ahead at 26-25. The Eagles called one final timeout but couldn't quite regain their footing as an attack error closed the match at 27-25.

NEXT UP
The Eagles will be back in Bender on Wednesday at 7 p.m. for one final nonconference match against Rider before starting up the Patriot League slate on Friday at Colgate.

TICKETS

• Tickets to all AU volleyball matches at Bender Arena are available throughout the season. Bring a group of 10+ and save over 40 percent off your purchase, available at $3 per person.
• Individual game tickets are available for $8 for adults, $5 for general admission, youth under 17 and seniors over 65. Military members, veterans and AU students are invited to join the Eagles for free admission with valid ID.
• CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS 
• For inquiries, e-mail clawed@american.edu or call 202.885.TIXX (8499).

For the latest on American University Volleyball, check in with AUEagles.com and follow the team on Twitter (@AU_Volleyball), Instagram (@AU_Volleyball) and Facebook (AU.Volleyball).