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

Box Score - South Alabama 3, Georgia State 2 (.pdf)

ATLANTA – The University of South Alabama volleyball team rallied from a 2-0 deficit Saturday to pick up a 3-2 victory over Georgia State at the Georgia State Invitational held at the GSU Sports Arena.  USA fell 3-1 in the opening match of the day to Samford.

With the win, South Alabama (5-5) will now close out its non-conference tournament schedule next weekend when the Jaguars head to Statesboro, Ga., to compete at the Springhill Suites Invitational.  USA will open up the tournament versus tournament host Georgia Southern on Thursday at 6 p.m. (CT).

With a 2-1 showing this weekend, South Alabama finished second at the GSU tourney – the second time this season that the Jaguars have done so this season.  Freshman outside hitter Savannah Stewart earned all-tournament honors for the Jaguars after leading USA with 40 kills (3.08) and 34 digs (2.62).  She also had three double-doubles at the tournament.

“Savannah was very steady for us all weekend,” South Alabama head coach Amy Hendrichovsky said.  “She was able to score points with her serve and played in all six of our rotations.  She just did a really good job for us this weekend.”

MATCH ONE: Samford 3, South Alabama 1
In the opening match of the day, the Jaguars dropped a 3-1 (17-25, 14-25, 25-18, 18-25) decision to Samford.

Savannah Stewart was the lone Jag in double figures with 11 kills.  The freshman outside hitter also posted 13 digs, giving her her second-straight double-double and her third of the season.  Torlandria Jones chipped in with seven kills of her own, while Lindsay Schwartz added six.    Jones also had a .636 attack percentage.  Junior libero Jenna Hassell led the club with 16 digs.

Samford (4-5) was paced offensively by Michaela Resser’s 17 kills, while Katie Murphy also added 12 kills of her own.  Elizabeth Neisler just missed registering double figures as she had nine kills.   Murphy committed just one error in her 23 attacks to finish with a .478 hitting percentage.  Resser was also extremely efficient in her attack, ending the match with a .361.

SET ONE: Samford 25, South Alabama 17
In the opening set, Samford came out and took control from the start, picking up the first two points of the match on kills from Elizabeth Neisler and Michaela Resser.  Resser would get off to an outstanding start as sophomore outside hitter led the way with six kills and hit .500 in the first set.

Later still leading by two, the Bulldogs pushed across seven of the next 10 points and gained some breathing room to take a 14-8 lead.  Reeser gave Samford the six-point advantage with another kill.  

USA was able to get as close as four a few times over the next several points – the last coming at 16-12 after a kill from Olivia Mohler – but the Bulldogs would extend their lead back out to as much as nine later the frame before taking the 25-17 win.  

Samford came out and posted a .265 attack percentage in the first set, recording 13 kills on 34 attacks, while committing just four errors.  The Bulldog defense at the net used eight block assists in the frame to limit South Alabama to a .027 (10-9-37).

SET TWO: Samford 25, South Alabama 14
Like the first set, Samford grabbed control from the outset of the second set.  Leading by two early, the Bulldogs later pushed their lead out to 15-8 after an ace from Casey Garvey.

Neisler and Reeser provided the offensive punch for Samford as the duo combined for seven of the club’s first 15 points in the frame.  Neisler would go on to post five kills in the set, while Reeser would add four.

From there, the Bulldogs would go on to pick up the set, 25-14, and take a 2-0 lead in the match.  As a team, Samford recorded a .400 attack percentage in the set.

SET THREE: South Alabama 25, Samford 18
South Alabama came out in the third set and took control early, taking advantage of several unforced errors by Samford.  

Savannah Stewart – who had been limited the previous two sets – sparked the Jags and gave USA a 10-4 lead with a kill.  South Alabama later stretched their advantage out to 14-7 following a Bulldog serving error.

From there, USA was able to hold off the Bulldogs and cut the match deficit to two sets to one with the 25-18 third-set victory.  

South Alabama posted its best offensive numbers in the third set, finishing the frame with 11 kills on 23 attacks, while committing just two errors for a .391 percentage.

SET FOUR: Samford 25, South Alabama 18
Carrying over the momentum from the previous set, South Alabama led by as much as three early on in the fourth set.  

With USA holding an 11-8 advantage, Samford pushed across five of the next six points and took a 13-12 lead following a kill from Lauren Hutchinson.  

USA would retake the lead (15-13) after a block from Mohler and Lindsay Schwartz and another Samford attack error, but the Bulldogs would answer back with a run of six unanswered points.  

Erika Devaughan began the run with three-straight kills.  Alicia Roth’s ace later capped off the scoring and put SU out in front, 19-15.  Alexi Bauer later clinched the match with another Bulldog ace – one of their seven in the match – giving Samford a 25-18 victory.

MATCH TWO: South Alabama 3, Georgia State 2
The host Panthers jumped out to an early two sets to none lead over the Jaguars in the night cap, but USA was able to rally back and take the final three sets to pick up a 3-2 (23-25, 20-25, 25-19, 25-16, 15-9) come-from-behind victory over Georgia State.

“I think we just didn’t come ready to play in the first two sets,” Hendrichovsky said.  “In the third set, we really started to play and were more aggressive, which put more pressure on (Georgia State).”

For the third-straight match and fourth in her last six, Stewart finished the match with a double-double, posting 14 kills and 11 digs, while Jaguar setters Emily Hundt (16 assists, 10 digs) and Kananen (32 assists, 16 digs) also register a double-double.  The double-double was the first for Hundt and the 18th for Kananen.

Mohler – who hit a .304 – also ended the night in double figures offensively, while Hassell carded a career-high 33 digs.  The 33 dig performance tied for second-most by a Jaguar in a match in program history. Juliana Almedia was the last Jag to do so, recording 33 against Arkansas State Oct. 3, 2010.

Georgia State (2-8) placed four players in double figures offensively led by Jaimee Freeman’s 14 kills.  Dede Bohannon chipped in with 11, while Eliza Zachary and Sydney Hunsley had 10 apiece.  On the defensive side of the net, Emily Averbeck led the club with 31 digs.

One of the key stats in the match was behind the serving line, where USA posted a season-high 10 aces.  Torlandria Jones had four, while Stewart added a career-high three.

SET ONE: Georgia State 25, South Alabama 23
The host Panthers held control for much of the first set, leading by as much as six (21-15) following a block assists from Hunsley and Andrea Ezell.  The duo would go on to post six total blocks each in the match.  

Trailing by five though, South Alabama began to mount a comeback and behind the play of Schwartz, the Jags were able to pull even at 23-23 courtesy of an 8-2 run.  During the scoring spurt, Schwartz posted three of her seven kills.

GSU quickly regrouped and picked up the 35-23 victory following a bad set by USA and a kill from Freeman.

SET TWO: Georgia State 25, South Alabama 20
The second set was much closer throughout as neither team was able to gain more than a two-point advantage on the other until late.

Leading by one (20-19), GSU closed strong ending the set on a 5-1 run.  Andrea Book and Zachary teamed up to turn back a Jaguar attack to give the Panthers the 25-20 second-set win and go up 2-0 in the match.  

SET THREE: South Alabama 25, Georgia State 19
Tied 3-3 early on in the third set, South Alabama finally started to gain some momentum as the Jaguars broke things open with a 7-1 run over the next eight points.  Mohler began the run with a kill and Kananen capped off the scoring and gave USA a 10-4 advantage when the senior dropped in a pair of aces.  

The Jaguars would hold control of the set from there and cruise to the 25-19 victory over the Panthers.

SET FOUR: South Alabama 25, Georgia State 16
Looking to close out the match, the Panthers led by two (9-7) after an ace from Gabby Serafin, but USA would have the answer and quickly retake the momentum and the lead for good as the Jaguars rattled off five unanswered points.  Valerie Podczasy aided the Jaguar run with a pair of kills.

Stewart later sealed the win for South Alabama with a kill and another ace to give the Jags the 25-16 victory and even the match at two sets apiece.  

Meghan Miller also played a huge role in the fourth-set victory as the freshman added five kills and hit a .625.  As a team, USA posted its best offensive performance of the match, finishing with 18 kills on 39 attacks, while committing just three errors.  GSU on the other hand struggled on the offensive side of the net, hitting a .078.

Hassell also had 10 of her 33 blocks in the fourth set for the Jaguars.

SET FIVE: South Alabama 15, Georgia State 9
In the fifth and final set, South Alabama jumped out to a quick 4-0 start, only to see the Panthers come back and tie the frame back up at 6-6 following a kill from Hunsley.

Leading just by one (9-8) later in the set, USA closed strong, finishing the match on a 6-1 run.  Schwartz added two kills – including the match clincher – in the pivotal run for the Jaguars and Jones carded two more aces.  

The Panthers struggled offensively in the fifth, recording just three kills and hitting a -.125.
 
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: The series between South Alabama and Samford is now tied 10-10… With her four block assists versus Samford, senior middle blocker Olivia Mohler moved into a tie for seventh place with former Jag Caryn Yonker…She added four more block assists against Georgia State to pass Yonker as she now has 193…With her 25 assists against the Bulldogs, senior setter Katariina Kananen moved into eight on the Jags’ career list…In the night cap versus GSU, Kananen moved into seventh place as she now has 1,717 for her career, passing Michelle Landa…With her 32 assists and 20 digs, Kananen also now has 18 career double-doubles…She is now just three behind Christine Spikes…With the win, USA improves to 2-0 in the all-time series versus Georgia State…With her 14 kills, versus the Panthers, Savannah Stewart has now led USA offensively in seven-straight matches…Stewart earned her first all-tournament honors of the season after recording three-straight double-doubles for the Jaguars…Jenna Hassell’s 33 digs tie with former Jag Juliana Almeida (vs. Arkansas State – Oct. 3, 2010) for second-most in a match by an individual…With her 16 assists and 10 digs, Jaguar freshman Emily Hundt recorded her first double-double of her career…The 10 aces versus Georgia State were a season-best for South Alabama…Torlandria Jones (4) and Stewart (3) also posted career-best in that category versus GSU.

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