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MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama volleyball team defeated Troy in straight sets (25-19, 25-21, 25-20) Tuesday in a Sun Belt Conference East Division match at Jag Gym.

USA (18-7, 9-2 Sun Belt) assumed first place in the Sun Belt's East Division with the win, which also marked the Jaguars' 14th straight at Jag Gym, improving their record to 14-0 at home this season.

USA will return to action Fri., Nov. 1, when it hosts Coastal Carolina at 6:30 p.m. in a Sun Belt Conference East Division match at Jag Gym.

 GAME FACTS
- USA took a 9-8 lead in the opening set after a kill by Kelley Hartman, but Troy responded with a 4-0 scoring run to take a 12-9 lead. The Jags answered with a 3-0 run on kills by Lauren Hartman and Rachael DeMarcus, and a Trojan attack error to tie the score at 12-12. Troy held a one-point lead at 15-14, but a 3-0 Jag run, highlighted by a kill by Hannah Harris and block-assist from Lauren Hartman and Hannah Johnson, gave USA a 17-15 advantage. South Alabama went on a 3-0 run that featured kills by Kelley Hartman and Meaghan Jones to extend its lead to 22-18. USA earned set point at 24-18 on a kill by Kelley Hartman, and clinched the set 25-19 on a kill by Jones to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
- The Jags took a 2-1 lead in set two after a kill by Jones, but Troy went on a 5-0 run to take a 6-2 lead. The Trojans held a 12-8 lead, but USA went on a 3-0 run that featured consecutive block-assists from Johnson and Harris to cut the Troy lead to 12-11. Troy responded with a 3-0 run to take a 15-11 lead. USA later used a 3-0 run, highlighted by consecutive block-assists from Johnson and Lauren Hartman and Kelley Hartman and Lauren Hartman, to tie the score 17-17. A Trojan service error and attack error tied the score at 20-20 before a service ace from Iva Durdanovic gave USA a 21-20 advantage. A bad Troy set and kill by Harris pushed the Jag lead to 23-20. South Alabama earned set point at 24-20 on a kill by Kelley Hartman, and clinched the set 25-21 on a kill by Harris to close the set with a 7-1 scoring run and take a 2-0 lead in the match.
- Troy tied the score at 4-4 in set three after a kill by Julia Brooks, but the Jags went on a 5-1 run, highlighted by kills by Johnson and Harris, for a 9-5 lead. USA held a 16-14 lead after a kill by Harris, but the Trojans answered with a 3-0 run to take a 17-16 lead. A kill by Hannah Maddux and block-assist by Kelley Hartman and Lauren Hartman, followed by a Trojan attack error, gave the Jags a 19-17 lead. A Trojan attack error and block-assist from Maddux and Kelley Hartman capped a 5-0 scoring run for a 21-17 lead. USA later earned match point at 24-20 on a kill by Kelley Hartman, and clinched the match 25-20 on a kill by Harris.

NOTES
- The win marked South Alabama's 18th of the season, which is the highest win total by a Jag team since the 1989 team won 23 matches.
- Harris recorded her third double-double of the season, finishing with 12 kills and 11 digs along with a .476 hitting percentage, two assists and four total blocks.
- Kelley Hartman posted 12 kills, .391 hitting percentage, one assist and three total blocks.
- DeMarcus finished with a game-high 35 assists, and also added two kills, three digs and one block.
- South Alabama recorded a season-high 12 total team blocks. 

QUOTES
Head Coach Alexis Meeks-Rydell
- On the win:
"It was a really good win. I thought we were in control the entire match, and that was one of the things we were trying to focus on. I feel like when we're in control, we're going to have a pretty good chance of winning. They (Troy) applied pressure early on in sets, and I'm just proud of our kids for – especially toward the end of the set – continuing to apply pressure. Our blocking was phenomenal tonight, and our first contact was phenomenal as well. Paige (Lynn) and Hannah Harris did a great job of passing on serve receive tonight, and I thought we did super well from the service line, especially at the end of the sets. I couldn't be more proud of them."

- On the weekend:
"Obviously Coastal Carolina and App State are both really good programs. Coastal played really well this weekend; even though they lost both (matches), they still played phenomenal. They have some tough players, especially with Anette Nemeth – the kid is unbelievable. We keep talking about, the best part of where we're sitting at right now is that we're in control of our own destiny, and that's where you want to be. You don't want to be sitting at home hoping other people lose or win to try and get you to where you want to be; you want to have control over what happens. I'm super proud of them tonight, but they know what that means on Friday as well."

UP NEXT
South Alabama will return to action Fri., Nov. 1, when it hosts Coastal Carolina at 6:30 p.m. in a Sun Belt Conference East Division match at Jag Gym.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with USAJaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at Twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the Rally Score Club, the volleyball specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Rally Score Club go directly to support the South Alabama volleyball program. For more information on how you can join visit:  jaguarathleticfund.com/rallyscoreclub.