University of South Alabama Athletics

NASHVILLE | South Alabama took the opening set Saturday afternoon, but Middle Tennessee rallied back to take the final three and earn a 3-1 (22-25, 25-8, 25-18, 25-23) win at the Belmont Invitational presented by Hyatt Place Green Hills and hosted by Belmont at the Curb Event Center.

Cambria Gaier led South Alabama (2-3) with 17 kills and also recorded 10 digs for her second double-double of the fall. Anabelle Cerny also had a double-double with 29 assists and a team-high 13 digs.

Middle Tennessee (4-1) was led offensively by Gabrielle Clinkscale's 20 kills and .429 hitting percentage. Logan Carr (14) and Sophia Henry (11) also finished in double figures, while the former posted a .571 hitting percentage.

POST-MATCH QUOTES - Head coach Jesse Ortiz
- On the match: "Middle Tennessee had a good win last night and came into this match pretty strong. We have to be more consistent in our play, and that has shown at times this weekend. We're going to keep grinding and work to improve in that area. We just have to play better."

How It Happened 
Set 1 – South Alabama 25. Middle Tennessee 22
•    KEY MOMENT: South Alabama had a pair of 4-1 runs midway through the set to gain some breathing room and eventually held on for the three-point victory
•    South opened the match with four-straight points that was capped off by a service ace by Sarah Gooch
•    MT answered with five-straight points of its own, highlighted by a solo block by Michaela Diouh (5-4)
•    With South leading by one (13-12), Gooch ignited a 4-1 run for the Jags and after a pair of MT attack errors, Blackwell recorded her second solo block of the set to extend the lead to four
•    After MTSU cut the deficit to two (18-16), South Alabama again rattled off a 4-1 run, this one ignited by a Marissa Taix ace
•    Led by Carr, who had five kills in the opening set, tried to help the Blue Raiders rally back, trimming the Jaguar lead to two several times, but South was able to hold on for the 25-22 win after a Middle Tennessee attack error, its 12th of the frame 
•    The Jag defense held Blue Raiders to a .044 attack percentage and recorded eight total blocks, while committing just three themselves
•    Gaier led South with four kills of her own 

Set 2 – Middle Tennessee 25, South Alabama 8
•    KEY MOMENT: After the two clubs traded points to open the set, the Blue Raiders broke things open with an 8-1 run and never looked back
•    Tied early on in the second set, Middle Tennessee pushed across eight of the next nine points (9-2)
•    Carr recorded a kill and a block assist and Clinkscale added two kills during run
•    A few points later, the Blue Raiders used a 7-0 run to extend their lead out to double figures
•    Veronica Sierzant's kill started run and Sophia Henry capped off the scoring with a kill to give MT a 13-point advantage (16-3)
•    From there, MT went on to take the set 25-8 and even the match at a set a piece
•    Middle Tennessee posted a .417 attack percentage and committed just two attack errors in the set
•    South Alabama committed eight attack errors and was held to a -.174 attack percentage

Set 3 – Middle Tennessee 25, South Alabama 18
•    KEY MOMENT: Middle Tennessee used a 5-0 run early on in the third set to take the lead for good
•    Tied 4-4, Carr and Clinkscale led a run of five unanswered points by the Blue Raiders with a pair of kills
•    Cerny cut the Jaguar deficit to four (12-8) with an ace, but MT pushed across three-straight points led by a kill and a block assist by Dlouh to extend the lead back out to seven
•    Middle Tennessee later grabbed a double-figure lead (22-12) after an ace by Sierzant, the fifth of the match for the Blue Raiders
•    South Alabama tried to rally late, cutting deficit to six (23-17) after a pair of kills by Gaier and an ace by Elyse Heffner
•    Sophia Henry though sealed the 25-18 win with her 10th kill of the match
•    For the second-straight set, Middle Tennessee was efficient as it recorded 21 kills and a .474 attack percentage, while committing just three errors
•    South Alabama posted a .324 percentage and committed just one error, and was led by Gaier's five kills 
•    Clinkscale (8) and Carr (6) combined to record 14 kills for the Blue Raiders in the set

Set 4 – Middle Tennessee 25, South Alabama 23
•    KEY MOMENT: Carr slammed home her 14th kill of the match and Sierzant dropped in Middle Tennessee's ninth ace to clinch the match
•    The Blue Raiders grabbed an early 13-9 lead after a kill by Dlouh and an ace by Kendal Mignerey, one of her three in the match
•    South Alabama answered back with four unanswered points and tied the set back up (13-13) after kills by Delaney Lawson and Gooch, block assists Heffner and Delaney Lawson, and a kill by Gaier
•    Tied at 23-23 after a kill by Gaier, her sixth of the set, the Blue Raiders closed out the match with the final two points

Post-Match Notes
•    The meeting marked the 20th in the all-time series and the first between the two former Sun Belt Conference foes since 2012
•    The last time South Alabama was held below 10 points in a set by an opponent was in the first set against Coastal Carolina (10/28/16) where it also scored just eight points
•    Cerny has now recorded double-doubles in four of her five matches this season
•    The double-double was Gaier's second of the season and the fifth of her career
•    Gaier has now recorded four or more kills seven times this fall and 64 for her Jaguar career

Up Next
•    South Alabama will take on Lipscomb at Allen Arena on Sunday at 1 p.m. 

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