Ole Miss 3, Memphis 1
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Oct. 24, 2006

OXFORD, Miss. -

Ole Miss (14-9)	30	30	26	34
Memphis (21-5)	23	28	30	32

Shelby Burton, Ashley Liford and Colette Ramirez each downed 16 kills and Laura Côté handed out 59 assists, but a late rally by Memphis was held off as the Tigers fell to Ole Miss 3-1 Tuesday in non-conference action. Senior libero Christen Clayton made a match-high 29 digs to break the Tigers' single-season digs mark--a mark she set last season.

The Tigers fell behind 18-11 in the fourth and final frame before making a charge to take a 26-25 lead late. Memphis looked to extend the contest to a deciding game with a 29-27 cushion, but gave up the lead and the serve advantage on a 3-0 run by the Rebels. The two squads traded side-out points until Ole Miss clinched the 34-32 win. Memphis made 12 service errors in the contest, including committing three after holding a 28-26 lead.

Memphis and Ole Miss battled through nine ties and six lead changes before a strong 11-2 swing by the Rebels put the Tigers behind 25-20. Ole Miss outscored Memphis 5-2 over the final seven rallies of the game for the 30-23 final. The Tigers held the Rebs to a .135 attack percentage, but only managed to turn a .028 average themselves. Memphis downed just eight kills in opening game, while Ole Miss posted 15.

Ole Miss led for most of game two before Memphis pulled even at 22 with a 10-4 rally. Trailing 28-26, the Tigers tied the contest with an Ole Miss service error, followed by a kill by Burton. The Tigers looked to have gained momentum to even the match a 1-1. However, the effort was put to rest after the Rebels made blocks on consecutive plays to end the game and take a commanding 2-0 lead into the locker rooms.

Memphis, who pulled off a 30-26 win in the third frame, found themselves ahead 17-13 after a 7-2 rally. But Ole Miss responded by scoring on each of the next five rallies to claim an 18-17 advantage. From there it was a see-saw battle until Ramirez took over. Ramirez accounted for six of Memphis' final nine tallies, including slamming home three kills, posting two blocks and adding an assist. The senior led the Tigers with a .464 hitting average. Memphis hit .364 with 22 kills in game three, and held Ole Miss to 13 kills and a .186 clip.

Sarah Bury knocked home 13 kills for the Memphis offense, while making 14 defensive digs for her eighth double-double of the year. Côté also posted a double-double with 10 digs. At the net, Memphis got four blocks from Ramirez and three from Burton and Melissa Nance.

Ole Miss' Jaclyn Toohey led all performers with 21 kills and a .370 average. Katie Kramer added 17 kills for the Rebels.

The Tigers will now prepare for a long Conference USA road weekend. Memphis will battle UTEP on Friday before taking on Tulane on Sunday.