Box Score - Troy 3, South Alabama 1 (.pdf)

MOBILE, Ala. – In a battle for second place in the Sun Belt’s East Division, the University of South Alabama volleyball team dropped a 3-1 (23-25, 25-19, 23-25, 21-25) decision  Saturday evening to fellow division-foe and in-state rival Troy at Jag Gym.

“I give Troy credit for getting the victory tonight,” South Alabama head coach Amy Hendrichovsky said.  “They work hard and definitely won the hustle plays tonight.  They have a never-give-up mentality and that’s why they’re setting in second in the division right now.  We’re winding down towards the end of the season and all four of the opponents that we will face down the stretch are fighting to get into the tournament.  For us, it’s all about finding ways to win and ways to be tough.”

USA (13-13, 6-5 SBC) will now close out the home portion of its regular season schedule as the Jaguars welcome Middle Tennessee on Friday (7 p.m.) and No. 19 Western Kentucky on Sunday (Noon).  Live stats for both matches can be accessed at www.USAJaguars.com.

After winning its first six home matches of the season, South Alabama has now dropped its last two.

Troy remains in second in the division and improves to 18-9 and 8-3 in the league with the victory.  The Trojans have also won three of the last four meetings in the series.

Melissa Waelter led the Jaguars in the loss with her eighth double-double of the season with 14 kills and 10 digs.  Seniors Lindsay Schwartz (11) and Olivia Mohler (10) also ended the match in double digits offensively.  Mohler and Schwartz were also solid defensively at the net, recording six and five block assists, respectively.  Jenna Hassell and Savannah Stewart had 14 digs apiece.

Troy placed three players in double figures, led by Alicia Duke’s match-high 17 kills.  Blair Winston was close behind her with 16 kills of her own, while Breanna Cullity finished with 12.  Courtney Cohen had 19 digs for the Trojans.

SET ONE: Troy 25, South Alabama 23
Led by the play of Dukes – who had three kills during the Trojans first five points – Troy took a three-point lead in the early going and later extended it out to 9-5 following an ace from Kelly Curran.  

USA kept clawing its way back and eventually tied the set back up at 10-10 when Schwartz’s put away capped off a 4-1 run for the Jaguars.  

South Alabama couldn’t get over the hump though as a Jag serving error on the next point ignited a run of five unanswered points for Troy.  Winston’s kill – one of her five in the set – ended the mini run and gave the Trojans the 15-10 advantage.  

Troy took its largest lead of the frame at 21-15 on a kill by Kayla Pickart, but South Alabama made a late charge at the Trojans, getting as close as  24-23 following back-to-back kills from Schwartz.  

Following Troy’s second time out of the set, Dukes sealed the 25-23 victory with her fifth kill of the match.

Both clubs hit the ball well in the opening set, as the Trojans posted a .342 attack percentage and the Jaguars registered a .314.  

SET TWO: South Alabama 25, Troy 19
South Alabama picked up the first two points of the second set, but Troy battled back and took a 7-6 lead after kills from Devin Von Pingel and Cullity.  

On the ensuing point thought, Katariina Kananen dropped in a kill that deflected off a Trojan defender.  The Kananen kill started a run of four-straight points for the Jags and was aided by three consecutive attack errors from Troy that eventually led to a 10-7 advantage for USA.

The held the lead from there and turned to its defense at the net to even the match at a set apiece.  Leading by four (23-19), Mohler and Schwartz teamed up to turn back a Trojan attack.  On set point, it was Mohler again who combined with Stewart to block another attack from Troy and give USA the 25-19 second-set win.

Troy, which had committed just five errors in the first set, doubled that tally with 10 in the second set.  USA aided to the Trojan struggles as the Jaguars finished the frame with eight block assists.

SET THREE: Troy 25, South Alabama 23
Coming out of the intermission, Troy jumped out to an early four-point lead (6-2), but South Alabama kept clawing its way back and eventually took its first lead of the set (9-8) on a block assist from Kananen and Mohler.  

Trailing by one, five points later, the Trojans reeled off four unanswered points of their own and extended their advantage back out to 14-11 after a kill from Winston, but coming out of a time out, South Alabama responded back with a string of four straight points to retake the lead 15-14 on a kill from Waelter.

South Alabama later took its largest lead of the frame (21-18) after a pair of kills from Stewart and Waelter.  

With USA still leading by three (23-20) following another kill from Waelter – one of her eight in the set – Troy’s defense sparked a pivotal 5-0 run to end the set.  Alexandra Alexander and Cullity blocked a Jaguar attack and Von Pingel dropped in an ace.  Winston and Cullity then clinched the third-set rally with a kill apiece.  Winston’s kill gave the Trojans the 25-23 win.

SET FOUR: Troy 25, South Alabama 21
Winston paced the Trojan attack early in the fourth set as the freshman posted three more kills over Troy’s first four points.  

South Alabama trimmed the deficit to two (8-6) after an attack error from Troy, but on the next point, Pickart ignited a run in which the Trojans picked up six of the next seven points.  A block assists from Von Pingel and Alexander capped off the run and gave the Troy a 14-7 lead.

USA wouldn’t go away though as the Jaguars responded with a run of five straight points and pulled within two (14-12) after a solo block from Waelter.  

Leading by just two, two points later, the Trojans put the match away as they rattled off eight of the next 10 points, including a 5-0 spurt to begin the run.  Cullity stretched the lead out to eight (23-15) with her fifth kill of the set.  

The Jaguars continued to battle and narrowed the deficit to as little as three on two occasions down the stretch, but that was as close as they would be able to get as Troy went on to take the match and the set, 25-21.

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).

NOTES: After winning its first six matches at home this season, South Alabama has now dropped its last two.  The loss to Troy was the first Sun Belt loss at Jag Gym for USA this season.  Troy has now won three of the last four in the series dating back to last season.  The win was also just Troy’s ninth in the series in Mobile.  With her 14 kills and 10 digs, USA’s Melissa Waelter now has eight double-doubles on the season and 12 for her career.  Katariina Kananen also carded her 10th double-double of the season and 25th for her career with 36 assists and 13 digs.  The six block assists by Olivia Mohler tied a season-high for the senior, matching the six that she had against Florida Atlantic back on Sept. 28.  Mohler is now just one block assists away from moving into a tie with Keturah Carter for fourth place on the program’s career chart.  With her 14 digs, junior libero Jenna Hassell is now just 14 digs away from tying Samia Salomao for fourth on USA’s career list.  

-- USA --