ITTA BENA, MISS. | Alabama State withstood a spirited effort from seventh-seeded Prairie View A&M in the opening round of the SWAC Tournament before downing the Lady Panthers in four sets (19-25, 25-17, 25-11, 25-11).

The Lady Hornets (21-17) advance to tomorrow's semifinal round with a tilt against Southern at 4 pm.

Three Alabama State players posted double-digit kills, led by junior Bayle' Bennett's' 17 and sparkling .467 attack percentage. Bennett grabbed her sixth double-double of the year with 10 digs. Payten Clark continued her recent string of success with 10 kills and three blocks and Taira Cottingham also notched 10 kills. Kutsch assisted on 47 kills, her eighth 40-plus kill match. Libero Kayla Torres posted a game-high 15 digs, the senior's highest output since an 18-dig effort against Texas Southern (10/21). Freshman Morgan Freeman got into the fray with three service aces.

Alabama State trailed for most of the opening set after grabbing an early 4-1 lead. Following a Martin kill to knot the score at 18-18, the Lady Panthers grabbed seven of the next eight points to close out the frame. Medearis put away three attacks and Kutsch notched 10 assists.

The second stanza was tightly contested throughout until Alabama State exploded for a 9-1 run to capture the set. Clark was dominant down the stretch, picking up three kills and a block, including an emphatic spike for the final point.

The Lady Hornets finally began to exert their will in the third set as Bennett, a first team All-SWAC performer, grabbed six kills and a service ace. Prairie View A&M ran out of gas in the final set as Alabama State jumped out to an 8-0 lead and never looked back.

Tomorrow's semifinal match will be streamed here.

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