BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford Volleyball team bested crosstown rival UAB 3-1 on Wednesday evening to improve to 5-5 on the season.
 
Junior outside hitter Gracie Lynn Butler set a new career-high with 23 kills on the night while hitting .266. Butler finished just two digs shy of a double-double with eight.
 
Senior Kayla Keshock logged nine kills and a team-high four block assists while Kaleigh Meritt posted eight kills.
 
Freshman setter Lexi Thatcher recorded her third double-double of the season, leading the Bulldogs in both assists (33) and digs (16) on the night. Kate Morgan also compiled 16 digs while Annabelle Straty and Amelia Johnston both notched nine digs each.
 
The Bulldogs jumped out to an 8-5 lead in set one, but the Blazers took advantage of a 4-0 run to take a 13-9 lead and followed that with another 4-0 run to go up 17-11. UAB scored four of the set's final five points to take it 25-19.
 
In set two, Samford jumped out to a 12-5 lead following a pair of block assists from Keshock and Kate Wonus. The Blazers cut the Bulldogs lead to 14-10, but Samford later responded with a 4-0 run to go up 18-10 before eventually taking it 25-18. The Bulldogs' saw a much more efficient attack in the second set, posting a .353 hitting percentage.
 
The Bulldogs took control of the third set with a 7-0 run that gave them a 19-10 lead. UAB made things interesting by rattling off a 4-0 run that cut Samford's lead to 22-18, but the Bulldogs put the Blazers away by scoring three of the set's final four points to claim it, 25-19.
 
Samford took a 9-4 four lead in the fourth set following a Blazer attack error. UAB came storming back, however, capitalizing on a 5-0 run to go up 12-11. Samford eventually retook the lead, using a late 3-0 run capped off by a Meritt kill to take a 20-19 lead. With the score tied at 21, The Bulldogs put the match away by scoring three straight points to get to match point before coming away victorious, 25-22.
 
The Bulldogs' 69 digs and seven total blocks on the night marked for their second-highest tallies in each category all season. The Samford defense held UAB to a .121 hitting percentage, with the Blazers never hitting above .200 in a set all night.
 
The Bulldogs will be back in action on Friday, Sept. 15 when they take on South Alabama at 6:00 p.m. on day one of the Alabama Challenge in Mobile.


 
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