Leading up to the start of the 2024 South Alabama volleyball season, we will preview all the position groups on the Jaguar roster.

The four-part series examines each position group ahead South's season opener versus Texas A&M at Jag Gym. This installment looks at South Alabama's outside and right side hitters.

RETURNING STARTERS (1)
- Abryanna Cannon (Gr., 6-1) – 31-24 (MP-MS), 305.0 points (2.68 ptps), 263 kills (2.31 kps), 71 digs, 74.0 total blocks (10 solo blocks, 64 block assists)

OTHER RETURNING PLAYERS (2)
- Emily Ready (Jr., 6-0) – 3-0 (MP-MS), 1 kill
- Jacqueline Beville (R-So., 6-0) – 3-0 (MP-MS), 1 kill

NEWCOMERS (6)
- Maradith O'Gorman (Jr., 6-2) – (Transfer from Michigan State) Led the Spartans with 3.04 points per set as a freshman and was second on the team with 260 kills on 2.45 kills per set 
- Sarah Gooch (So., 6-1) – (Transfer from West Virginia) Was a Prep-Volleyball Top-150 recruit, an AAU All-American (2022), a USAV NTDP and an AVCA All-American
- Erika Spankus (R-Fr., 5-11) – Was a member of the roster but redshirted the 2023 season
- Eva Dittmar (Fr., 6-1) – Recorded 1,314 kills with a .310 hitting percentage with 406 digs, 134 total blocks and 134 assists over the course of her prep career
- Alexa Strandberg (Fr., 6-3) – Recorded 291 kills and had a .337 hitting percentage to go along with 58 aces, 50 total blocks and 203 digs as a senior
- Megan Smith (Fr., 5-10) – Ended prep career ranked fourth in career kills, and seventh and ninth, respectively in the single-season Top 10 at Conway High School

LETTERWINNERS LOST (2)
- Hannah Maddux – 31-31 (MP-MS), 560.5 points (4.92 ptps), 466 kills (4.06 kps), .258 attack percentage, 54 aces (0.47 saps), 143 digs, 64.0 total blocks (17 solo blocks, 47 block assists)
- Maddie Soboleski – 28-28 (MP-MS), 407.0 points (3.95 ptsps), 359 kills (3.49 kps), 19 service aces, 251 digs (2.44 dps), 41.0 total blocks (17 solo blocks, 24 block assists)

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
- Hannah Maddux (first team) and Maddie Soboleski (second team) both earned all-SBC honors last season after ranking among the league leaders in kills (third) and hitting percentage (seventh), respectively
- Maddux also became the first player in program history to be drafted to play professionally as she was the 26th overall draft pick in the Pro Volleyball Federation's inaugural draft
- As a team, South Alabama ranked second in points (17.12), third in hitting percentage (.232) and fourth in kills (13.06)
- Abryanna Cannon had 12 double-digit kill matches, including 17 with eight or more kills in 2023
- Erika Spankus earned honorable mention All-American honors from the AVCA in 2022

FOLLOW THE JAGS
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