Recap: Bugg, Thomas-Ailara lead Team McCage to 68-67 win

KEY MOMENT

Trailing by a 48-43 margin, Team McCage roared back and used five kills from Thomas-Ailara to collect a 25-19 win in the final frame while securing the one-point match victory.

LEADERBOARD UPDATE

Outside Natália Zilio Pereira climbed six spots into third place on the leaderboard with 1,845 points, while setter Natalia Valentin-Anderson moved back into fourth place despite her squad’s loss. Bugg, meanwhile, rose 11 positions into 23rd place after her season-high output.

TEAM MCCAGE NOTES

• The Purple jersey earned its second win in the last six matches following Team McCage’s one-point triumph on Sunday … Teams wearing the Purple top have secured a 5-4 record in three weeks this season.
• Team McCage’s 68-67 victory marked the eighth match in AU Pro Volleyball Championship to be decided by a single point, including the third instance this season … It also marks the fifth match to be decided by three points or less this season.
• Middle blocker Tori Dixon has tallied three or more solo blocks in four consecutive outings after completing Sunday’s victory with a team-high three rejections … It also marks the fifth time in nine matches this season she has registered three or more blocks.
• Dixon also snapped a personal four-match losing streak with Sunday’s victory, moving her record to 5-4 this season.
• Setter Madi Bugg contributed 31 assists and 15 digs for her sixth career double-double, including her second double-double this season … She also tallied 40 assists and 14 digs against Team Hentz to finish Week One on October 6.
• Bugg earned MVP 1 honors for the first time in her two-year AU Pro Volleyball Championship career … It also marked her fifth career Match MVP citation, including her second this season.
• Bugg finished with a season-high 302 leaderboard points, marking the fourth time she has surpassed 300 points in her career.
• Opposite Temi Thomas-Ailara posted her third double-digit kill effort after finishing with a team-high 11 kills in Sunday’s outing.
• Libero Piyanut Pannoy has registered six matches with 10 or more digs this season after contributing 14 digs on Sunday.
• Outside hitter Natália Zilio Pereira, who earned her third Match MVP award of the season with MVP 3 distinction, nearly registered a double-double after collecting nine kills and a season-high 12 digs.

TEAM VALENTIN-ANDERSON NOTES

• Teams wearing the Blue jersey have lost seven of their last eight matches, including the last five contests in a row … The Blue jersey owns a 2-7 record through three weeks.
• Setter Natalia Valentin-Anderson played in her 21st career match as a captain, moving into a tie for third place on the league’s all-time list with outside hitter Leah Edmond … Valentin-Anderson now owns a 7-14 career record as a captain, including a 1-5 mark this season.
• Valentin-Anderson dished out 30 or more assists for the eighth time in nine matches this season after ending Sunday’s opener with a match-high 36 assists … She closes Week Two with a league-record 1,970 career assists.
• Making her first start of the season, outside hitter Jaali Winters put down a season-high in Sunday’s loss … She entered the contest with six total kills in her first four appearances.
• Libero Manami Kojima finished with a team-high 14 digs, giving her six consecutive matches with 10 or more digs.
• Outside hitter Bethania De La Cruz-Mejia authored her fifth double-digit kill performance of the season after closing Week Three with 11 kills against Team McCage on Sunday … It also marked the 55th career double-digit kill of her career, which stands as the most in league history.
• Opposite Brittany Abercrombie has now collected 10 or more kills in 23-of-24 career matches, including 8-of-9 outings this season, after leading Team Valentin-Anderson with 12 kills in Sunday’s setback.
• Abercrombie also added 10 digs to mark her 10th career double-double, including her fourth double-double this season.

MATCH MVPS

• #1 – Madi Bugg (Team McCage), +60 points
• #2 – Temi Thomas-Ailara (Team McCage), +40 points
• #3 – Natália Zilio Pereira (Team Valentin-Anderson), +20 points