Southern Miss Volleyball Hosts Troy in Sun Belt Home Opener
HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Southern Miss (11-2, 2-0 Sun Belt) hosts Troy (6-5, 1-1 SBC) in its Sun Belt Conference home opener this weekend at the Wellness Center. The Golden Eagles will play at 6 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Saturday, with both matches streaming on ESPN+.
Southern Miss enters the weekend on a three-match winning streak after sweeping Louisiana Tech last weekend. The Golden Eagles lead the Sun Belt with an .846 winning percentage and are first in the conference in digs per set (15.91) and aces per set (2.07). They also allow the fewest kills and assists per set in the league.
Last weekend, Southern Miss’s offense improved significantly. The team hit .241 across two matches against Louisiana Tech and averaged 14.57 kills per set, ranking third in the Sun Belt. Setter Allie Hazelwood earned her second Sun Belt Setter of the Week award after totaling 83 assists during the series. Hazelwood leads the conference with 10.74 assists per set for the season.
Senior outside hitter Sadie McAda surpassed 1,000 career kills last weekend. She finished with a conference-best 37 kills and leads the Sun Belt with 4.22 kills per set. McAda also recorded her eighth double-double of the season and posted a season-high 22 kills Saturday.
Defensively, Sunni Sheppard contributed 35 digs last weekend, helping hold Louisiana Tech to a .145 hitting percentage. She averages five digs per set and added 11 assists and two aces over the weekend.
Troy enters the series with a 6-5 record after splitting a pair of matches with Louisiana Tech. The Trojans are hitting .240 as a team and averaging 12.82 kills and 1.95 aces per set. Kalina Calvillo leads Troy offensively with 3.45 kills per set, while Madison Marx directs the offense with 6.00 assists per set.
The all-time series favors Troy, which leads 8-4, including a streak of seven consecutive wins. Troy took two five-set matches last November in Troy, Alabama.
Follow Southern Miss volleyball on Instagram (@southernmissvball), X (@southernmissvb), and Facebook (Southern Miss Volleyball) for updates on the series.
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