FOLEY, Ala. – The Sun Belt Volleyball Championship Semifinals are set. James Madison, South Alabama, Texas State and Troy all earned victories on Friday at the Foley Events Center in the semifinal round of the Sun Belt Volleyball Championship. 

James Madison and Troy will meet in Saturday’s first semifinal at 4 p.m. CT. South Alabama and Texas State will face one another in Saturday’s second semifinal at 6:30 p.m. CT in a re-match of last year’s SBC Tournament Championship Game. Both matches will be broadcast on ESPN+. 

Tickets may be purchased in advance online through the Foley Sports Tourism Box Office. Tickets are sold on a daily basis and are $10 per day for adults and $5 per day for children ages 12 and under. Students of Sun Belt Conference institutions are admitted free with a valid student ID.

Match 7: (2W) Troy 3, (6W) Arkansas State 2 (Box Score)

Troy sophomore outside hitter Tori Hester registered 19 kills as one of three players with double-figure kills as the Trojans held off upset-minded Arkansas State for a thrilling 3-2 (20-25, 25-18, 25-14, 17-25, 17-15) victory on Friday in the quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship. 

Arkansas State reached match point in the fifth set at 14-11, but Troy ran off three points in a row, including a pair of kills from Amiah Butler, to even the score at 14-all. The Trojans claimed the set 17-15. Butler finished the match with 15 kills and Julia Brooks had 13. 

Troy (18-11) advances to the semifinal round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship for the third time in the last four years. The Trojans, the second seed in the West, will face James Madison, the East’s top seed at 4 p.m. CT Saturday. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+. 

Jaci Mesa charted a team-high 18 digs in the match and Savannah Poling totaled seven blocks for Troy. The two teams were nearly even statistically. 

Arkansas State (9-22) placed three players in double-figure kills, led by Macey Putt’s 19. The Red Wolves put together an impressive run in the Sun Belt Conference Championship, coming within two points of the semifinal round after finishing as the sixth seed in the SBC West. 

Match 8: (1E) James Madison 3, (5E) Georgia Southern 0 (Box Score)

James Madison, the 2022 Sun Belt Conference regular-season champion, hit .317 as a team and swept Georgia Southern, 3-0 (25-17, 25-19, 25-20) on Friday in the quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship. 

Miëtte Veldman tied for the match high with 12 kills and came up with nine digs. Sophie Davis, the 2022 Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year, totaled 10 kills on .444 hitting with five digs and five blocks. Setter Caroline Dozier dished out a match-high 35 assists. 

James Madison (22-4) has now won 13 matches in a row. The Dukes, the top seed in the Sun Belt East, advance to face Troy, the second seed from the West, in Saturday’s first semifinal at 4 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast by ESPN+. 

Georgia Southern (16-12) was led by Paige Powers who tied for the match high with 12 kills on .312 hitting. 

Match 9: (3W) South Alabama 3, (2E) Coastal Carolina 0 (Box Score)

South Alabama was dominant in all phases on Friday and secured a 3-0 (25-21, 25-13, 25-12) victory against Coastal Carolina in the quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship. 

The Jaguars held a 42-28 advantage in kills and a 14-3 edge in blocks. South Alabama never trailed over the final two sets of the match. 

Hannah Maddux led the way offensively for the Jaguars with 13 kills on .393 hitting. Maddie Soboleski added 11 kills on .400 hitting with five digs and two blocks. Setter Kailey Keeble recorded a double-double with a match-high 31 assists and 10 digs. Libero Rachel Hickey, the 2022 Sun Belt Libero of the Year, logged a match-high 18 digs. 

South Alabama (18-12), the third seed from the SBC West, advances to Saturday’s second semifinal where it will face Texas State, the West’s top seed, at 6:30 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+. 

Coastal Carolina (17-13) was led by six kills from Kendall Harris and 10 digs apiece from Lina Perugini and Ella Saada. 

Match 10: (1W) Texas State 3, (5W) Louisiana 1 (Box Score)

Texas State turned in a balanced attack that featured four players with double-figure kills and three players with nine or more digs. The Bobcats earned a 3-1 (25-18, 24-26, 25-20, 25-14) win against Louisiana on Friday in the quarterfinal round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship.

Jada Gardner registered a team-high 12 kills on .364 hitting with nine digs, while Janell Fitzgerald had 11 kills on .370 hitting. Caitlan Buettner and Tessa Marshall each totaled 10 kills. Fitzgerald notched a double-double with a match-high 17 digs. 

Emily DeWalt, the 2022 Sun Belt Player of the Year, charted 52 assists and became the first player in Sun Belt Conference history to reach 6,000 career assists. She added seven digs and two kills in the match, including the final point of the evening. 

Texas State (23-6), the No. 1 seed from the Sun Belt West, faces South Alabama, the No. 3 seed from the West, in Saturday’s second semifinal. Opening serve is set for 6:30 p.m. CT and the match will be broadcast on ESPN+. 

The Bobcats have now reached the semifinal round in every Sun Belt Conference Tournament since joining the league in 2013. 

Louisiana (15-12) was led by 12 kills from senior Kelsey Bennett.

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 – (2W) Troy 3, (6W) Arkansas State 2
Match 8 – (1E) James Madison 3, (5E) Georgia Southern 0
Match 9 – (3W) South Alabama 3, (2E) Coastal Carolina 0
Match 10 – (1W) Texas State 3, (5W) Louisiana 1
 
Semifinals – Saturday, November 19
Match 11 – 4:00 p.m. CT – (1E) James Madison vs. (2W) Troy
Match 12 – 6:30 p.m. CT – (1W) Texas State vs. (3W) South Alabama
 
Championship – Sunday, November 20
Match 13 – 1:00 p.m. CT – Winner Match 11 vs. Winner Match 12 [ESPN+]