MOBILE, Ala. - Speed was the theme of the match as South Alabama (3-0) swept Tulane (1-2) to conclude the Jaguar Invitational presented by Hampton by Hilton at Providence Park.
Three of the Jags' first nine points were scored on service aces from Paige Lynn, Maddie Soboleski, and Hannah Maddux. With the quick start came early separation, but a run from Tulane threatened the set. The Jags came off a timeout with a 21-17 lead and renewed energy, surging them into a set lead with a 25-18 win.
USA looked frantic early on in the second set but a decisive kill from Maddux and a serve from Capizzi that was too much to handle put the momentum back in the Jags' favor as it looked that South had found an answer for anything Tulane tried as they went on a 10-2 run for a 20-12 lead. The Red and Navy left no doubt in the set, winning it 25-18.
Early struggles crept in during Set 3, with Tulane making a 3-0 run going into the media timeout at 15-12. The Jaguars clawed back with a 5-1 run of their own to retake the lead 19-18, capped by a commanding Capizzi kill. Maddux's back-to-back kills left the Green Wave foaming, but Capizzi's service run sent Jaguar Gym into a frenzy. South didn't look back as they clinched the match 25-19.
QUOTES
Hannah Maddux
On how the weekend went- "Yeah, this weekend was really good for us as far as starting out as a team. We have a lot of returners, so it was a good opportunity to get everyone out on the court. We also have a new right side with Abryanna, she did great. So it was really good to get everyone out of the gym that we normally practice in and be able to play opponents that you know, were very tough. Tulane's a great team, SFA's a great team, Jackson State is as well. It was a testament to our group of how hard we've been working all summer and all spring to get back to this point."
Coach Ortiz
On the performance against Tulane- "I thought our girls really showed up today. I mean, a lot of physicality over on that side, Tulane's is great. Been loving their coaches and their system and what they're doing. We knew they'd be really physical and there'd be times where there was highlight attacks and there'd be times where they might give us a few points. So we were trying to be efficient and then take big swings when we could and it worked out for us today."
On what he thought of the weekend as a whole- "I like our defense for sure. We're scoring at a pretty high clip right now and obviously I'm gonna knock on wood mid broadcast for that because we don't want to mess with that. But I thought those things went really well. We spent a lot of time on offense in the spring so it's awesome watching (Kailey) Keeble go through her decision making. I think that was pretty good. So that's for me, that's the highlight of the weekend."
NOTABLES
- South is now 7-28 all time against Tulane.
- USA now has a six game active home winning streak.
- South has held all three opponents this season under .150 attack percentage.
UP NEXT
South Alabama travels to Clemson, S.C. for the Clemson Invitational, beginning play against Green Bay on Friday, Sep. 1, at 2 p.m.
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