Auburn Volleyball's postseason push

The push towards the postseason is in full swing for Auburn Volleyball. The Tigers will play their last six of eight remaining games inside the friendly confines of Neville Arena. Auburn currently sits at 1-6 in conference play and 11-8 overall. Despite being on a six-game losing streak, the players feel there are some positives they can build on.

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“I feel like we walked out feeling like our system was working and we walked out feeling we were more connected on the court then we ever have been. We were able to bounce back from errors really fast. I think that is something we did not see in the first few losses. If we can become more consistent with that system it’s going to be really good,” junior middle blocker Kate Mansfield said.

“I think we did a really good job of staying aggressive. We stayed on it. We never gave up. We didn’t really look at the scoreboard. We were going hard no matter what. I think that’s what really matters. I think in the long term that is going to be so good for us,” junior outside hitter Belle Patrick said.

Patrick leads the team, in kills, with 241. Mansfield is tied for 4th on the team in that category with 106. Before conference play started, head coach Brent Crouch felt if they won nine conference games, they would be in good standing to make the NCAA tournament. That goal may be tenuous now, but the players are focusing on the aspects of the game they can control.

“Nothing has changed. We are playing aggressive. We are playing hard. We are playing like us and just need to stay on that level. We know that if we put our minds to it and play like us we can do that. We just need to stay consistent and keep playing our game,” Patrick said.

“We know we can beat these two teams this weekend. I know we have a lot more opportunities. The SEC tournament is important, and we can pull out some wins there that we weren’t able to in preseason. I think it’s exciting because we have a lot more SEC games coming up than we realize,” Mansfield said.

Auburn will face Ole Miss tonight at 8 and then host LSU on Sunday at 2. Auburn Undercover asked both ladies how it feels to be back at home after a grueling four game SEC road trip.

“Being in your own bed and getting good sleep. Having time to do treatment with our athletic trainers. That will kind of help ready our bodies more and our minds are locked in because we are home. We are comfortable in this place,” Patrick said.

“Personally, it’s just great to be in a routine. Go to class. Wake up in the same spot. That’s really nice to me is just being in my routine. Being at home is what gets us to do that,” Mansfield said.

Through the first seven conference games, the Tigers played four ranked opponents. Zero ranked opponents remain on the schedule. The players feel what they experienced early on in the season has prepared them for this final stretch of matches.

“We hope to have four more wins. That’s not a hope, that’s a standard in our gym. These teams, we need to lock in and need to win. This is the difference in finishing top six, seven. Finishing top six or seven would get you in the tournament nowadays. These are the teams we got to beat to get there,” Mansfield said.

Admission to both games is free. Tonight’s game can be seen on the SEC Network and Sunday’s game will be on the SEC Network+.

Auburn Undercover is an independent Auburn sports media company covering Auburn athletics, recruiting and insider news.