Box Score (PDF)

MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama volleyball team defeated Arkansas State in four sets (25-21, 22-25, 25-15, 25-14) Friday in the Jaguars' Sun Belt Conference opener at Jag Gym.

USA (9-5, 1-0 Sun Belt) extended its home win streak to eight matches, and also snapped a seven-match losing streak to ASU (9-5, 0-2 Sun Belt) with the win.

South Alabama will return to action Saturday when it hosts Little Rock in a Sun Belt Conference match at 6:30 p.m. at Jag Gym.
 
GAME FACTS
- USA held a two-point lead at 12-10 before a kill by Meaghan Jones and bad set by ASU pushed the Jag lead to 14-10. Consecutive kills by Jones later in the set extended the USA lead to 17-12. The Jags later earned set point at 24-19 on a bad set by ASU, and a kill by Jones clinched the set 25-21 for a 1-0 lead in the match.
- ASU held a 7-5 lead early in set two, but a kill by Hannah Harris and block-assist from Harris and Kelley Hartman tied the score at 7-7. The Red Wolves used a 3-0 run midway through the second set, aided by a pair of service aces by Josie Stanford, to build a three-point advantage at 15-12. But USA responded with a 3-0 run on kills by Jones, Rachael DeMarcus and Iva Durdanovic to tie the score at 15-15. ASU then went on a 3-0 run to build a 19-16 lead. USA went on a 4-1 run that featured a kill and service ace from Durdanovic to tie the score at 20-20. A block-assist by Hartman and DeMarcus tied the score at 21-21, but ASU used consecutive kills from Stanford and Payton Uhlenhake to take a 23-21 lead. ASU earned set point at 24-22 on a kill by Uhhlenhake, and clinched the set 25-22 on a Jaguar attack error to tie the match at one set apiece.
-  USA erased a one-point deficit early in set three with a 5-1 run that featured a kill by Johnson and a pair of kills from Durdanovic to take an 8-5 lead. The Jags later went on a 4-0 run, highlighted by kills from Hartman, Durdanovic and Harris, to take a 13-6 lead. USA doubled its lead at 14-7 on a kill by Durdanovic, and pushed its advantage to 16-7 following a service ace from Durdanovic and ASU attack error. South Alabama doubled its lead at 20-10 on a kill by Jones. USA earned set point at 24-13 on a kill by Harris, and clinched the set 25-15 on a solo block by Hartman to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
- USA broke a 5-5 tie in set four with a 5-0 scoring run, highlighted by kills from Jones and Johnson and a block-assist by Johnson and DeMarcus, to take a 10-5 lead. A kill by DeMarcus later in the set doubled the Jaguar lead at 14-7. A 6-0 Jaguar scoring run, highlighted by kills from Harris, Hartman and Durdanovic, and block-assists from Harris and Hartman and Durdanovic and Hartman, pushed the lead to 20-8. USA earned match point at 24-10 on an ASU ball-handling error, and clinched the match 25-14 on an ASU service error.

NOTES
- South Alabama posted a .338 team hitting percentage, while ASU finished with a .204 hitting percentage.
- The Jags recorded a .343 team hitting percentage in set three, and a .424 hitting percentage in the fourth set.
- The win marked South Alabama's first over Arkansas State since 2013, when the Jags defeated the Red Wolves in straight sets in Mobile. 
- Jones tied her career high in kills with 17, and also added a .286 hitting percentage, one assist, one service ace, four digs and one block-assist.
- Harris recorded 13 kills, a .344 hitting percentage, one assist, one service ace, six digs and two block-assists.
- Durdanovic finished with 12 kills, a .478 hitting percentage, one assist, four service aces, seven digs and one block-assist.
- DeMarcus posted her first double-double of the season, finishing with a game-high 35 assists and 12 digs along with five kills and two block-assists.
- Ashlyn Roberts finished with a game-high 24 digs, and also added four assists. 

QUOTES
Head Coach Alexis Meeks-Rydell
- On the win:
"Arkansas State is obviously a very good program. We worked a lot on consistency in practice the last couple of days. All we have been focusing on is taking care of what we are supposed to do and our responsibilities on our side; we can be competitive with just about anybody if we do that. We knew we had to pick it up defensively after the second set, and we just kept talking about the things we have been talking about all year. When we serve and pass well – our offense tonight was untouchable. We didn't have a kid not meet their (hitting percentage) goal tonight. I am super proud of Ashlyn (Roberts) with 24 digs. I could see in the second set that she was getting in her head just a little bit. I gave her one thing to focus on, and that was digging some more hard-driven balls to the middle of the court. I think once she zoned in on just one responsibility, you saw her pick up everyone else around her. When we're giving them mini-goals and just certain things to focus on, we're not really focused on who is on the other side of the net; we're more just focused on ourselves. I couldn't be more proud of this team. I know this was a really big moment for them, and we just keep talking about protecting our home court. And I can't thank our fans enough, either. We have had great crowds every single match. They get into it every time, and I think the team knowing it has support from the community, especially on big matches like this, it means the world to them."

- On starting Sun Belt play with a victory:
"We talked yesterday about resetting; we came into this match 0-0. What you do in non-conference is to prepare you for conference (play). Yes, you want to have successful non-conference play, but at the end of the day you are more looking for that experience, because conference is ultimately what matters. And we were fortunate to get to open conference play at home. We have been playing well at home, and we need to take advantage of that and start off hot while we are in the gym that we are comfortable with."

UP NEXT
South Alabama will return to action Saturday when it hosts Little Rock in a Sun Belt Conference match at 6:30 p.m.

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.