Itta Bena, Miss. – No. 5 Alabama State shrugged off a slow start to earn a 3-1 (20-25, 25-23, 25-18, 25-17) victory over No. 4 Southern University in the quarterfinals of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Volleyball Tournament on Friday evening.
 
The Lady Hornets (15-21) recorded 44 kills in the final three sets while holding the Jaguars (14-23) to only 29 kills to secure the come-from-behind win and advance to the semifinal match.
 
The offense was spread all over as four Lady Hornets secured double-digit kills led by senior Krysta Medearis (.393) and junior Taira Cottingham (.257) with 14 kills apiece. Cottingham added a career- and game-high three service aces, two digs and three blocks.
 
Joining the duo in double-digit kills were senior Bayle' Bennett with 13 and junior E'laisah Young tallying 11 on a .389 hitting percentage. Young also had five digs and a game-high tying six blocks. Junior McKenzie Boland led the offense with a match-high 46 assists while freshman Emersen Belles tallied a match-high 14 digs with two service aces.
 
Southern was led by Shelby Jolly with 16 kills on a .306 hitting percentage and Princess Stark secured 34 assists in the match.
 
Set One (Alabama State 20, Southern 25)
Alabama State could not find any offensive rhythm in the first set as the team only tallied 11 kills with 10 errors to post a .029 hitting percentage. Southern came out hot and hit .286 with 12 kills while also putting up four team blocks and 10 digs to limit any hopes for Alabama State.
 
Set Two (Alabama State 25, Southern 23)
Both teams battled hard in the second set as there were four ties but Alabama State was able to grab the sole lead change in the set by securing 15 kills while also pouring in four service aces. Additionally, the Lady Hornet defense stepped up with 16 digs and three blocks while limiting the Jaguars to just 10 kills to even the match at 1-all.
 
Set Three (Alabama State 25, Southern 18)
Just like the start of the second set, the beginning of third was a dog fight as there were six ties and three lead changes. Knotted at 11-all, Alabama State used a 9-3 run to take a 20-14 lead which it would not relinquish. The Lady Hornets secured 14 kills with only four errors for a .303 hitting percentage.
 
Set Four (Alabama State 25, Southern 17)
Alabama State began the final set with a 6-0 run that gave the team enough momentum to secure the win to advance to the semifinals. Despite the offense posting 15 kills with a .344 hitting clip, the defense played a crucial role as the Jaguars only posted eight kills but tallied eight errors as well for a .000 hitting percentage in the final frame.
 
Up Next
Alabama State will take on in-state rival and top-seeded Alabama A&M in the semifinals on Saturday with first serve at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on the SWAC Digital Network.
 
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