FOLEY, Ala. - Arkansas State and App State won their opening-round matches on Wednesday at the Foley Events Center to advance to the second round of the Sun Belt Volleyball Championship.
The Red Wolves earned a 3-1 victory against Georgia State, as the Mountaineers earned the 3-0 sweep over ULM.
The second round of the Sun Belt Volleyball Championship will take place Thursday with four matches beginning at 11 a.m. CT. All four matches will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Match 1: (6W) Arkansas State 3, (7E) Georgia State 1 | Box Score | Photo Gallery
Arkansas State outside hitter Ilayda Dincer registered 15 kills with 10 digs, three service aces and a pair of blocks to lead the Red Wolves to a 3-1 win (25-16, 21-25, 26-24, 25-20) against Georgia State in the first round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship.
Arkansas State (16-13), the No. 6 seed in the SBC West, advances to play Georgia Southern, the No. 3 seed in the East, on Thursday at 11 a.m. CT. The match will be broadcast by ESPN+.
Arkansas State has won at least one match in the Sun Belt Conference Championship in 10 of their last 11 appearances. Red Wolves’ setter Erin Madigan totaled 41 assists with 14 digs and a pair of blocks for the double-double.
The defensive battle at the net featured 22 blocks from the Red Wolves and 24 from the Panthers. Arkansas State held a 10-2 advantage in service aces and a 46-42 advantage in assists, while Georgia State led 84-79 in digs.
Georgia State (5-23) was led by Erin Wyatt who tallied a double-double with 16 kills and 13 digs. Aaliyah Mitchell also tallied 10 kills and 10 digs for the double-double. Panthers’ setter Bella Ferary picked up the third double-double with 17 assists and 15 digs.
Match 2: (6E) App State 3, (7W) ULM 0 | Box Score | Photo Gallery
App State hit .318 as a team and totaled 21 blocks to earn the 3-0 (25-21, 25-16, 25-22) victory in the first round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship. It marked the first win for the Mountaineers at the tournament since their run to the Sun Belt championship match in 2018.
The Mountaineers were led by fifth-year senior McCall Denny’s team-high 13 kills and 11 digs for her 31st career double-double with a .400 hitting percentage. Lulu Ambrose added 11 kills with a pair of blocks. App State led 21-3 in blocks and hit .318 as a team.
App State (14-12), the No. 6 seed in the SBC East, advances to play Troy, the No. 3 seed in the West, on Thursday at 4:30 p.m. CT. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
ULM (7-24) was led by Hannah Redrow who hit .474 and totaled 11 kills with a pair of blocks. Brynn Botkin tallied the double-double on 31 assists and 12 digs.
2023 Sun Belt Volleyball Tournament Schedule and Results
November 15-19, 2023 | Foley, Ala. | Foley Sports Tourism Complex
First Round – Wednesday, November 15
Match 1 – (6W) Arkansas State 3, (7E) Georgia State 1
Match 2 – (6E) App State 3, (7W) ULM 0
Second Round – Thursday, November 16
Match 3 - 11:00 a.m. CT – (3E) Georgia Southern vs. (6W) Arkansas State [ESPN+]
Match 4 – 1:30 p.m. CT – (4W) Louisiana vs. (5E) Old Dominion [ESPN+]
Match 5 – 4:30 p.m. CT – (3W) Troy vs. (6E) App State [ESPN+]
Match 6 – 7:00 p.m. CT – (4E) Marshall vs. (5W) Southern Miss [ESPN+]
Quarterfinals – Friday, November 17
Match 7 – 11:00 a.m. CT – (2W) South Alabama vs. Winner Match 3 [ESPN+]
Match 8 – 1:30 p.m. CT – (1E) Coastal Carolina vs. Winner Match 4 [ESPN+]
Match 9 – 4:30 p.m. CT – (2E) James Madison vs. Winner Match 5 [ESPN+]
Match 10 – 7:00 p.m. CT – (1W) Texas State vs. Winner Match 6 [ESPN+]
Semifinals – Saturday, November 18
Match 11 – 2:00 p.m. CT – Winner Match 7 vs. Winner Match 8 [ESPN+]
Match 12 – 5:00 p.m. CT – Winner Match 9 vs. Winner Match 10 [ESPN+]
Championship – Sunday, November 19
Match 13 – 3:00 p.m. CT – Winner Match 11 vs. Winner Match 12 [ESPN+]