TROY, Ala. ? Trailing 2-1 after the fourth set and 14-11 in the fifth, the South Alabama volleyball team rallied back to capture at thrilling 3-2 victory (25-22, 20-25, 18-25, 25-18, 16-14) over Troy Friday evening at Trojan Arena.
“We started out strong in the fifth set, but it got away from us quickly,” said South Alabama head coach Nicole Keshock. “This time though, I saw a calmness in our players. In the past we have played tight in those situations, but tonight we didn’t and we believed that we could get the job done. This win means so much for our team, not only because of where we are trying to go this season, but just for them to get over that hump of being able to win in crunch time. I’m extremely proud of our team.”
With the win, South Alabama improves to 11-12 on the season and 5-10 in Sun Belt play. More importantly, the Jags move one step closer to securing a spot in the 2008 Sun Belt Conference Tournament. Troy falls to 13-17 overall and 4-11 in the league.
The five set win also marked the first time this year that USA has done so. The Jags had been 0-4 in previous attempts, including 0-3 in SBC play.
USA was led offensively on the night by Lindsay Schwartz and Brittney Blackwelder’s 16 kills each. The two Jags also each hit over .400 for the match finishing at .467 and .433, respectively. Hristina Markova was close behind the duo with 15 kills of her own.
Troy was led by Meghan Gilroy’s match-high 19 kills.
The Jags will now play their final two matches of the season when they head to Western Kentucky (Feb. 14) and Middle Tennessee (Feb. 15).
SET ONE: South Alabama 25, Troy 22
With the opening set tied at nine, USA’s Hristina Markova and Lindsay Schwartz led the Jaguar attack over the next eight points, combining for six of South Alabama’s during that stretch. During the run, Markova recorded three of her six kills in the first set, while Schwartz slammed home two of her own. The duo also did it on the defensive end, combining for a block assists to put South Alabama up 15-9. USA grabbed its largest lead of the set 17-10 at the end of the run after a Trojan attack error. With the Jags sitting just one point away from taking the set at 24-19 after a Tereza Bendlova kill, the Trojans attempted to rally late, reeling off three unanswered points and pulled within two at 24-22 after an Emily Allen service ace. Markova had the answer though and sealed the 25-22 victory with another kill.
SET TWO: Troy 25, South Alabama 20
In the second set, Troy grabbed the momentum quickly, jumping out to an early 8-3 lead, including a string of five straight points to start the set. Meghan Gilroy led the charge for the Trojans during the scoring spurt as the junior was responsible for half of Troy’s points during the run. Troy later took its largest lead of the set at eight (18-10) after another put away from Gilroy. USA kept clawing its way at the deficit eventually getting as close as three on a couple of occasions, the last coming at 23-20 after a Trojan attack error. Troy though was able even the match two points later as the Trojans held on for the 25-20 win. After hitting a .375 in the opening set, South Alabama struggled in the second frame, recording just seven kills and committing seven attack errors for a .000 percentage. Gilroy paced the Trojan attack in the second set, recording eight of her kills during the frame.
SET THREE: Troy 25, South Alabama 18
After USA pulled to within one (10-9) on a block assist from Schwartz and Bendloava midway through the third set, Troy pushed across seven of the next eight points to grab a 17-10 advantage. The Trojan run was aided by five Jaguar attack errors. Later trailing by seven (19-12), South Alabama used a 6-2 run over the next eight points and cut into the Trojan lead and narrowed the deficit to 20-17 after a Brittany Blackwelder kill. Troy answered the Jag run with one of its own, closing the set with a string of five straight points to take the set 25-18.
SET FOUR: South Alabama 25, Troy 18
With USA holding a 13-8 lead in the fourth set after kills from Schwartz and Blackwelder, the Trojans reeled off five unanswered points and tied the contest back up at 13 after an ace from Allen, her third of the match. The Jaguars didn’t let Troy keep the momentum long as Juliana Pallamin de Almeida and Blackwelder each slammed home a kill to give USA the lead, one it would not relinquish the rest of the way. Holding a 19-17 lead late, South Alabama closed out strong taking six of the final seven points to even things up at two sets apiece with a 25-18 set victory. Schwartz capped things off when the Jag freshman recorded her seventh kill of the set.
SET FIVE: South Alabama 16, Troy 14
Troy led most of the fifth set, leading by as many as five on a couple of occasions. With the Trojans setting one point away from taking the match at 14-11, South Alabama would not give in and rallied back, closing the match with five unanswered points. Markova ignited the Jaguar rally with a pair of back-to-back kills. The Jag sophomore then capped off the comeback with her 15th kill of the match to seal the 16-14 South Alabama victory.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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