FOLEY, Ala. – Arkansas State, Georgia Southern, Louisiana and South Alabama all earned victories on Thursday at the Foley Events Center to punch their tickets to the quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt Volleyball Championship.
All four of Thursday’s second-round matches went at least four sets with two matches going the full five sets.
The quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt Volleyball Championship will take place on Friday with four matches beginning at 12 p.m. CT. All four matches will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Match 3: (6W) Arkansas State 3, (3E) Old Dominion 2 (Box Score)
Arkansas State senior outside hitter Macey Putt charted 22 kills and 11 digs to lead the Red Wolves to a 3-2 (25-21, 26-28, 25-21, 23-25, 18-16) win against Old Dominion in the second round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship.
In the match, Putt eclipsed the 1,000 career digs plateau, making her just the sixth player in Arkansas State history to record the dual milestone of 1,000 career kills and 1,000 career digs.
Freshman Arkansas State outside hitter Bailey Helzer, who led the Red Wolves in their first-round match against Georgia State, added 15 kills on a team-high .306 hitting with a career-high 22 digs.
The Red Wolves (9-21), who won only two conference matches during the regular season, have now won two matches at the Sun Belt Conference Championship and have advanced to the event’s quarterfinal round. Arkansas State, the sixth seed from the West, will face Troy, the second seed from the East, on Friday at 12 p.m. CT in a match that will be broadcast by ESPN+.
Old Dominion (12-16) was led by a match-high 23 kills from Myah Conway and a match-high 24 digs from Anna Burkhardt.
Match 4: (5E) Georgia Southern 3, (4W) Southern Miss 1 (Box Score)
Georgia Southern outside hitter Emily Jarome, the 2022 Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year, registered a team-high 16 kills on .310 hitting with eight digs and six blocks to power her team to a 3-1 (25-23, 25-23, 22-25, 25-11) victory against Southern Miss in the second round of the Sun Belt Conference championship.
Georgia Southern was led by a balanced attack that also included double-digit kill performances from Paige Powers and Jordan Christy. Libero Ashlyn Lovett scooped a match-high 23 digs. The Eagles held a resounding 16.5-5.0 edge in total team blocks.
Georgia Southern (16-11) held a resounding 16.5-5.0 edge in total team blocks. The Eagles have reached double-figure blocks in each of their last four matches. Georgia Southern, the No. 5 seed in the East, advance to face Sun Belt Conference regular-season champion James Madison on Friday at 2:30 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Southern Miss (18-11) was led by a match-high 18 kills and 14 digs from Mia Wesley. Megan Harris and Lauren Talbert each came up with 17 digs in the match.
Match 5: (3W) South Alabama 3, (6E) Marshall 1 (Box Score)
South Alabama junior outside hitter Hannah Maddux totaled 21 kills on .318 hitting to lead a dynamic offensive attack. The Jaguars notched a 3-1 (25-11, 22-25, 25-16, 25-12) victory against Marshall in the second round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship.
South Alabama totaled 61 kills to Marshall’s 33. The Jaguars also hit .328 as a team and limited the Thundering Herd to a .094 offensive efficiency. Four Jaguars recorded nine or more kills in the match. Niki Capizzi charted 12 kills on .318 hitting, while Morgan Stalcup and Maddie Soboleski each totaled nine. Rachel Hickey, the 2022 Sun Belt Libero of the Year, led the way defensively with a match-high 15 digs.
South Alabama (17-12), the 2021 Sun Belt Tournament Champion, is the No. 3 seed from the East. The Jaguars advance to play Coastal Carolina, the No. 2 seed from the East, in the quarterfinal round on Friday at 5 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Marshall (10-20) was led by 11 kills from Regan Tinkle on .304 hitting. Macy McElhaney recorded a double-double with 10 kills and 10 digs.
Match 6: (5W) Louisiana 3, (4E) App State 2 (Box Score)
Louisiana’s senior outside hitter Kelsey Bennett notched a team-high 16 kills and came up with 10 digs to lead the Ragin’ Cajuns to a hard-fought 3-2 (25-19, 14-25, 22-25, 25-13, 15-12) victory against App State in the second round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship.
Bennett, who also recorded four blocks, was one of three Louisiana players to post double-figure kills, joining Coco Gillett (15) and Celeste Darling (13). Gillett added a match-high 22 digs. Cami Hicks had a match-best eight blocks.
Louisiana (15-11) out-blocked App State 13.0-8.0 and held an 87-68 advantage in digs. The Ragin’ Cajuns, the No. 5 seed from the West, advance to face the West’s top seed Texas State on Friday at 7:30 p.m. CT in the quarterfinal round. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
App State (18-10) was led by 18 kills on .261 hitting from McCall Denny. Denny also added 11 digs for a double-double and three blocks. Alyssa McBean totaled a team-high 18 digs.
2022 Sun Belt Volleyball Tournament Schedule and Results
November 16-20, 2022 | Foley, Ala. | Foley Sports Tourism Complex
First Round – Wednesday, November 16
Match 1 - (6W) Arkansas State 3, (7E) Georgia State 0
Match 2 – (6E) Marshall 3, (7W) ULM 2
Second Round – Thursday, November 17
Match 3 – (6W) Arkansas State 3, (3E) Old Dominion 2
Match 4 – (5E) Georgia Southern 3, (4W) Southern Miss 1
Match 5 – (3W) South Alabama 3, (6E) Marshall 1
Match 6 – (5W) Louisiana 3, (4E) App State 2
Quarterfinals – Friday, November 18
Match 7 – 12:00 p.m. CT – (2W) Troy vs. (6W) Arkansas State [ESPN+]
Match 8 – 2:30 p.m. CT – (1E) James Madison vs. (5E) Georgia Southern [ESPN+]
Match 9 – 5:00 p.m. CT – (2E) Coastal Carolina vs. (3W) South Alabama [ESPN+]
Match 10 – 7:30 p.m. CT – (1W) Texas State vs. (5W) Louisiana [ESPN+]
Semifinals – Saturday, November 19
Match 11 – 4:00 p.m. CT – Winner Match 7 vs. Winner Match 8 [ESPN+]
Match 12 – 6:30 p.m. CT – Winner Match 9 vs. Winner Match 10 [ESPN+]
Championship – Sunday, November 20
Match 13 – 1:00 p.m. CT – Winner Match 11 vs. Winner Match 12 [ESPN+]