LSU took down Incarnate Word 3-1 Saturday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. The scores went 25-20 25-27 25-11 and 25-19.
That win locked up a clean sweep of the season’s opening weekend for the Tigers.
LSU moved to 2-0 on the year. Incarnate Word dropped to 0-2. It’s the program’s first perfect opening weekend since 2017 and that’s a nice way to kick things off.
The Bayou Bengals controlled nearly every stat sheet category on the night. LSU out-hit UIW .281 to .169 and won the kill battle 61-46.
The Tigers also led in assists 56-43 aces 5-1 blocks 11-2 and digs 78-56.
Across the whole weekend LSU racked up 21 total blocks which comes out to 2.33 per set.
The defense also averaged nearly 17 digs a set while keeping opponents stuck at a low .176 hitting mark.
Robinson and Brown keep rolling
Outside hitter Jurnee Robinson and setter Takyla Brown each notched a double-double for the second straight match.
That kind of consistency early in the year matters a lot for a team trying to build rhythm.
Robinson was the top performer of the night. She piled up 22 kills six blocks including one solo stop and two aces for 27.5 total points.
She also chipped in 14 digs showing she can do a bit of everything on the court.
Brown ran the offense smoothly handing out 43 assists. She also set a new career high with 23 digs and tacked on an ace a block and a kill of her own.
Freshman libero Kiley Brooks made her mark too. She grabbed her first collegiate double-double with 12 assists and 16 digs. That’s a strong debut showing for a young player still finding her footing at this level.
Middle blocker Sanaa Donaie got her first start of the season and made it count. She finished with nine kills on a sharp .348 hitting percentage.
Donaie was one of three Tigers with three blocks alongside middle blockers Jessica Jones and Angelina Lee.
A back and forth battle across four sets
LSU jumped out early in the first set building a 9-4 lead before stretching things further behind big runs. The Tigers took set one 25-20 hitting .371 as a team.
Outside hitter Lainee Pyles was efficient with five kills on just seven swings and zero errors.
Incarnate Word answered in the second set.
The Cardinals fought back from an early deficit and grabbed a late 25-24 edge before closing it out 27-25 to even the match.
LSU didn’t let that carry over though.
The Tigers exploded in set three jumping to an 8-2 start and eventually closing on a 10-4 run to win 25-11.
It was LSU’s best offensive frame hitting .480 while holding UIW to a match-low .029.
Set four followed a similar pattern. LSU built an early cushion pushed the lead to 21-16 and closed out the match 25-19.
Jones was especially sharp in that final set hitting .714 on seven attempts with no errors.
LSU now heads north for a road trip to Ann Arbor Michigan.
The Tigers will face Michigan and Michigan State at the Crisler Center on Sept. 1-2 looking to carry this early momentum into their first true test outside Baton Rouge.
