JONESBORO, Ark. (11/8/24) – Kaitlin Whitlock led three players with double-digit kills on Friday night to lift the Arkansas State volleyball team to a 3-1 (26-28, 25-20, 25-22, 25-23) win over South Alabama inside First National Bank Arena.
Whitlock had 20 kills and a career-best 21 digs to lead the Red Wolves (21-4, 11-2 SBC) to their sixth straight win. The victory over the Jaguars (14-9, 10-3) extended A-State's home winning streak to 12 and halted USA's 10-match winning streak, while putting the Scarlet and Black in sole possession of first place in the SBC West Division.
Devyn Lewis tallied 15 kills on the night, while Daedrianna Cail added 12 with four blocks. As a team, A-State hit .201. Erin Madigan had 33 assists to go along with 12 digs
Defensively, the Scarlet and Black limited the visitors to a .156 clip and tallied nine blocks, while out-digging USA 79-59. In addition to Cail's four blocks, Grace Wiley accounted for four – two solos.
The opening set featured 21 ties and 11 lead changes, with neither side leading by more than three. South Alabama closed the frame with a 4-1 run and took a 1-0 lead in the match on an ace by Lillie Simons, winning the set 28-26.
A-State seized momentum in the second set, scoring five of the first six points. USA rallied later in the frame to take a 20-18 lead, but the Red Wolves leveled the match with a seven-point run to win the set, capped by a Cail kill.
The Red Wolves never trailed in the third set and had six kills by Whitlock en route to taking a 2-1 lead in the match, clinching the stanza when Cail and Madigan teamed up on a block.
In the fourth set, A-State battled back from a 16-13 deficit to end the match on a 4-0 run, the final three points coming via Whitlock kills, to win the contest.
NEXT UP
The Red Wolves conclude their 2024 home slate Saturday at 1 p.m. against South Alabama, with four seniors being recognized prior to the contest.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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