Without Mateos, the Jags suffer their second defeat but keeps goldfish mentality

By Rodrigo Burgos Avila | Editor in chief

AIKEN, S.C.—Playing shorthanded without starting right side Angela Mateos, the Augusta University women’s volleyball team could not find enough consistency in a 3-1 loss to the University of Alabama in Huntsville on Thursday night, Sept. 18, at the USC Aiken Convocation Center.

The Jaguars dropped the match by set scores of 16-25, 16-25, 25-22 and 16-25.

Despite the result, Augusta had bright spots. Setter Sydney Harrington dished out 39 assists to lead the offense, while Mia Saavedra and Layne Witherspoon carried the scoring load at the net with 14 and 11 kills, respectively. Saavedra also added nine digs, coming just shy of a double-double, while libero Giulia Rodrigues anchored the back row with a match-high 25 digs.

Still the Jaguars (5-2) struggled to slow down the Chargers’ firepower. Zoe Smith dominated for UAH with 21 kills on .340 hitting, while Caroline Moyer added 17 kills of her own. UAH (7-1) outhit Augusta .261 to .163 and controlled the match at the net with 66 total kills compared to Augusta’s 45.

Augusta’s best stretch came in the third set, when steady passing and tough serving allowed the Jaguars to pull out a 25-22 win. Witherspoon pointed to serving as the key difference in that moment.

“We were finally serving tough. We kind of let up both sets on serving, and I think serving tougher and and getting the other team out of system made it a little easier on us, so we could finally find a groove again,” she said.

Even without Mateos, Witherspoon said the team had confidence in their depth.

“We weren’t discouraged by that,” she said. “We know everyone on the team can play. So we juts had all the confidence in the world that whoever was gonna play instead of Ange could do it.”

Jaguar assistant coach Dekyra Dennis acknowledged that Mateos’ absence left a significant gap.

“She may not score offensively all the time, but understanding that her big block transitions, those defensive points turn into offensive points. When you highlight that part of the game, it makes us that much more dynamic. So it was tough,” Dennis said.

Looking ahead to Montevallo on Friday, Sept. 19, and Mississippi College on Saturday, Sept. 20, Dennis stressed the importance of responding the right way.

“It’s okay to eat humble pie, don’t sit on it for too long, but to understand that to win and to be at a high level all the time in college is all about consistency and executing the game plan,” she said.

Witherspoon echoed that message, saying the team needs to reset and trust what they already know.

“I think we just need to go back to the basics, thinking of the little things, doing our jobs. We’re just kinda playing frantic and we know how to play volleyball. We trust our teammates,” she said. “So just kind of reset… like a goldfish.”

The Jags will have little time to dwell on the loss, returning to the court Friday, Sept. 19, at 1p.m. against Montevallo. With a “goldfish” mentality, the Jaguars hope a short memory will help them reset and bounce back quickly.

 Contact Rodrigo Burgos Avila at rburgosavila@augusta.edu.

Libero Giulia Rodrigues tallies one of her match-high 25 digs in the Jaguars’ four-set battle. At the top of the page, Patrycja Kabala (21) prepares to deliver a serve for Augusta during Thursday’s match against the University of Alabama in Huntsville. (photos by Rodrigo Burgos Avila/The Bell Ringer)