BOX SCORE

AUBURN – The Jacksonville State volleyball team rallied to win the final two sets on Tuesday night to hand Auburn a 3-2 (25-21, 15-25, 17-25, 25-21, 15-9) loss on the Tigers' home court.

Just three days after downing Alabama in Tuscaloosa, the Gamecocks (6-2) staved off elimination to defeat the Tigers (5-3), the state's other Southeastern Conference school, and extend their winning streak to three matches. The win gave JSU two wins over the SEC in the same season for the second-straight year after the Gamecocks downed Auburn and Ole Miss in 2008.

The Gamecocks held off the Tigers to win the first game, only to watch them cruise to wins in games two and three and put JSU's backs against the wall. Jax State rallied to win the fourth game to set up the fifth and deciding game. In the final game, the Gamecocks jumped out to a quick 7-3 lead and never allowed Auburn to pull any closer than two points.

"I was really proud of the way we kept fighting tonight and I really thought we earned this win," JSU head coach Rick Nold said. "Auburn is a very athletic team and we knew it would take a full team effort to get the win. We kept working hard until the momentum shifted our way at the end."

The duo of junior Kara Slater and freshman Alyx Schulte drove the JSU offensive attack. Slater, a native of Colorado Springs, Colo., hit .478 and knocked down 12 kills, while Schulte, of Cold Spring, Ky., led all players with 15 kills on a .433 attack percentage. Junior Caitlin Vorbeck added 11 kills to round out a group of three JSU players with double figures in the kills category. Junior Brooke Schumacher dished 29 assists, while sophomore Allie Schleisman added 17.

Sophomore Lauren Harkins and senior Brittney Whitten led the Gamecocks' defense with 14 and 12 digs, respectively, while each had a pair of service aces. Also on the defensive front row, Vorbeck led JSU with four assisted blocks and a solo stop, while Whitten had a team-high two solo blocks.

Auburn's Alyssa Davis was outstanding in the losing effort, recording 13 kills on just 17 attacks for a .647 attack percentage. Liz Crouch led the Tigers defense with 14 digs.

The Gamecocks will face another SEC foe in their next match on Sept. 11, when they open the University of Arkansas against the host Razorbacks in Fayetteville, Ark. The match is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT. JSU will conclude its 11-match season-opening road swing on Saturday with matches against Kansas and North Texas. The Gamecocks' home opener is set for Tuesday at 6 p.m. against in-state rival Troy. Admission is free to all JSU home matches.