JONESBORO, Ark. - No. 8 Troy women's volleyball defeated No. 5 South Alabama, 3-2, as the Trojans advance to the quarterfinals to face tournament host and fourth-seeded Arkansas State on Friday at 7:30 p.m. (CT). The win was the first for the Trojans since 2013, when they also were the eighth seed.

With the win, Troy improves to 11-21 on the year while the Jaguars fall to 17-10.

The Trojans jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead as they dominated the first two sets of the match, 25-17 and 25-20. USA rallied back to tie the match 2-2 and seemed to have all the momentum heading into the fifth set. The Trojans led the final set 12-6 before the Jaguars would rally to get within one at 14-13 but a final kill by Troy's Cheyenne Hayes ended the match and advanced the Trojans.

Hayes led all players with 42 attacks while Logan Page had 17 kills for the Trojans. Kiara Barrett added 27 assists for the Trojans and Savannah Moore totaled eight blocks for Troy in the win. Troy had 74 kills with a .227 hitting percentage while USA tallied only 55 kills and a .200 hitting percentage.

Hayes was the only Trojan to pick up a double-double as she added 18 digs in the match.

Troy will look to repeat Thursday's performance against the Red Wolves on Friday. A-State defeated the Trojans in Troy, 3-0.