South Alabama (14-13, 9-7 SBC) vs. Georgia Southern (19-8, 10-6 SBC)
Quarterfinals | Sun Belt Conference Championship
Location: Foley, Ala. (Foley Event Center)

Date: Friday, Nov. 21
First Serve: 7 p.m. CT
Live Stats: USAJaguars.com
Watch: ESPN+
Social: @SouthAlabamaVB

Tickets: Click Here

THE SERIES
All-time series: 22nd Meeting (USA, 13-8)
Home: 7-3 | Away: 5-4 | Neutral: 1-1
3-set: 8-1 | 4-set: 3-4 | 5-set: 2-3 
Current Streak: GS 1
Last Meeting: Georgia Southern defeated South Alabama 3-0 (11/22/24) in the quarterfinals of the Sun Belt Conference Championship

JAG NOTES
•    South Alabama (14-13, 9-7 SBC) enters the postseason after dropping a pair of matches at Coastal Carolina to close out the regular season, falling in straight sets in the opener and in five sets in the series finale
•    With the two losses, the Jaguars have dropped three straight and six of their last eight
•    For the series against the Chanticleers, Cambria Gaier averaged 5.38 kills per set, 3.25 digs per set and 5.81 points per set
•    Gaier posted her second-straight double-double in the finale with career highs in both kills (26) and digs (14)
•    The 26 kills by Gaier are tied for the eighth most by a Sun Belt player this season
•    Gaier is averaging 3.49 kps and 4.11 points per set, ranking seventh and fifth, respectively, in the Sun Belt in those two categories, and on Tuesday, she was named the Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year, as well as second-team all-conference
•    The freshman has led the club offensively in 11 of her last 12 matches, and the Caledonia, Mich., native leads South with 39 aces and ranks fourth in the SBC with 0.38 aces per set
•    In SBC play, Gaier is averaging 3.67 kills per set (fourth in the SBC), and averaging 4.45 points per set (fourth in the SBC)
•    Anna Loberg – who earned first-team all-conference honors for the second straight season and was named the SBC Setter of the Year – has been playing some of her best ball as of late as she has twice been named the setter of the week
•    Her 9.25 assists per set against league foes is second-most among setters, and in conference play
•    Since switching to a 5-1 offense in the series finale at Texas State, Loberg is averaging 9.86 assists per set, most of any setter with Georgia Southern's Kirsten Barrett the closest at 9.80 per set
•    Over the 13-match stretch, Loberg has performed at this level without all-conference performer Sarah Gooch who was lost for the season due to injury in the series opener at Louisiana (nine matches)
•    Middle hitter Dalayla Blackwell currently ranks fifth in the SBC in blocks (1.15) and is an offensive threat averaging 2.02 kps and a .266 hitting percentage
•    Blackwell has been outstanding in Sun Belt in conference play as the redshirt sophomore's 1.38 blocks per set are second-most in conference action
•    Redshirt freshman Alexa Strandberg leads the club with 98 total blocks, while Blackwell is right behind her with 97 this fall
•    Strandberg also has 21 solo blocks, and ranks just outside the Top 10 in the conference with 0.96 per set
•    As a team, South Alabama ranks third in the conference in the category with 2.48 per set, and is averaging 2.64 blocks per set in conference matches, which is second
•    Briana Wilson – a second-team all-SBC selection – ranks fourth in the league in digs with 4.41 per set, and in conference play, she is averaging 4.40 per set, which ranks fourth-best as well

SERIES NOTES VS. GEORGIA SOUTHERN
•    South Alabama and Georgia Southern have met 21 previous times in the all-time series, including twice in the postseason
•    The Jaguars defeated the Eagles in straight-sets in the opening round of the 2023 SBC Championship, but Georgia Southern picked up a sweep at last season's event
•    The win by the Eagles last season snapped a nine-match series win streak by South Alabama
•    Of the South's 13 wins in the series, eight have been in straight sets
•    South Alabama holds a 9-1 record in the series in matches played in the state of Alabama
•    Since the Eagles joined the Sun Belt Conference (2014), South has won 13 of the 18 meetings
•    Georgia Southern opened up the series, which began during the 2010 season, with five-straight wins
•    The two clubs have not met during the regular season since 2021 

A QUICK LOOK AT THE EAGLES
•    Georgia Southern (19-8, 10-6 SBC) enters the quarterfinal match with the Jaguars after splitting its two matches versus Louisiana over the weekend
•    The Eagles split their series with the Ragin' Cajuns, winning in straight sets in the opener and falling in five in the series finale
•    Georgia Southern tried to rally back in the finale after dropping the first two sets, but UL clinched the match with a 15-13 win in the fifth set
•    Junior outside hitter Reagan Barth piled up 37 kills, just one shy of the program's single-match record and tied for the second-most this season, while also hitting .378 and adding 17 digs in the loss
•    Kirsten Barrett – a six-time SBC Setter of the Week selection this fall – also tallied 54 assists and 20 digs for the Eagles in the match
•    GS comes into the postseason having dropped three of its last four
•    Barth has been one of the top offensive weapons in the league this season as she is averaging 4.38 kills per set, third-best in the SBC, while her 4.92 points per set are also third most 
•    Barth has been just as solid in SBC action as her 4.64 kps and 5.11 points per set trail just JMU's Louisell Kennedy
•    Alex Myers ranks third in the Sun Belt in hitting percentage posting a .355 percentage this fall, and her .378 percentage in league play is the best by an individual player
•    Barrett leads the conference in assists (10.15 per set), and the Eagles are averaging 13.31 kills per set and hitting .244 in SBC matches, both ranking third-best 
•    Georgia Southern is holding SBC opponents to a .187 hitting percentage, second-lowest in the league, and second in digs (17.34 per set)
•    Libero Maddie Cugino ranks second in the Sun Belt in digs with 4.76 per set

FOLLOW THE JAGS
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