CARBONDALE, Ill. | Alabama State came up short in a pair of 3-1 matches at the Banterra Center to USC-Upstate and Eastern Illinois in Carbondale as part of the Southern Illinois Saluki Bash on Friday.

HOW IT HAPPENED

GAME 1

• The first set of the tournament for Alabama State was a tight race, with teams finding themselves tied four times in the first 15 scores.
• With the set tied at 15-15, the Hornets sparked a late run, with kills from Lauren Hughes (Lancaster, Texas), A'Nylah Cobb (Tallahassee, Fla.) and Jada Rhodes (Tallahassee, Fla.) to take a 24-20 lead, however USC-Upstate took the final lead with a six-point rally to take the opening set 26-24.
• Alabama State started the second with an 8-4 run, controlling the pace and never trailing while taking a 25-16 game assisting on 12 of their 13 kills.
• The Spartans responded in the third by taking an early lead before attack errors allowed the Hornets to tie the score at 9-9.
• The teams continued to trade points over the set, with five total ties before USC-Upstate took the 25-22 win.
• The Spartans continued their strong play in the fourth, scoring four unanswered to open the set and maintained control taking the match 25-12 to take the match.

GAME 2

• It was a back-and-forth affair in the opening set that saw eight tie scores and four lead changes.
• After trailing 4-1 early, a kill from Hughes began a major run for Alabama State to take a 10-5 lead.
• The Panthers responded with a rally of their own to tie the score at 11-11 and later a short run to put them up 22-19.
• After a called timeout from Alabama State, Kalysia Bates (Phenix City, Ala.) and Rhodes earned kills to tie the game 22-22.
• The run caused a timeout from Eastern Illinois, where out of the break the teams tied three more times before the Panthers took set one 27-25.
• Alabama State controlled the momentum for a majority of the second set, jumping out to a 10-4 lead.
• Eastern Illinois rallied with a run to tie the score at 14-14, and later took a slight lead before each team continued to go back and forth with three lead changes over the remainder, with the Hornets taking the set 26-24.
• Eastern Illinois carried momentum into the fourth set, controlling the game and gaining a 15-10 and later took the match 25-21.
• It was all Eastern Illinois in the third as the Panthers took a 9-4 lead to begin the set – The Panthers did not trail in the set as Alabama State struggled offensively and fell 25-9.

MATCH NOTES

• Jada Rhodes continued her strong play with 21 kills and 19 digs combined on the day, including her third consecutive double digit kill game against USC-Upstate.
• Sophomore A'Nylah Cobb recorded 20 kills to go along with 19 digs and four blocks, while junior Kalysia Bates logged 14 kills and five blocks in the pair of matches.
• Setter Madison Beasley recorded 58 assists, including a season-high 29 against Eastern Illinois.
• Alabama State will play their final game of the tournament on Saturday, their second game broadcasted on the ESPN networks of the year.

UP NEXT
Alabama State (0-8) will return to action on Saturday against host school Southern Illinois for their final match of the weekend. The game between the Hornets and Salukis will be broadcasted on ESPN3 with the first serve scheduled for 1:30pm.

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