Courtesy of the Southwestern Athletic Conference
JACKSON, Miss. – The top two seeds will face off for the SWAC Volleyball Tournament crown as Alabama State and Texas Southern square off at 3 pm Sunday afternoon from the Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center from the campus of Jackson State University.
The match will be shown on ESPN3. A link to watch the match will be provided when made available.
Alabama State heads into the match-up with a 23-8 record on the year while Texas Southern carries in a 22-10 record for the season.
While this is Alabama State's fourth-straight berth in the Championship match, this ends a 22-year drought for Texas Southern, who last made it to the finals during their 1994 SWAC championship season. Since then, every other team in the SWAC has made at least two appearances in the title game. Alabama State will vie for its third title in four years.
Alabama State has defeated Texas Southern in the teams' last five meetings, as the Hornets bounced Texas Southern in the 2015 tournament -- beating the Lady Tigers both times during the double-elimination tournament -- and also swept the 2016 season series.
Both sides have advanced to the finals without much trouble. Texas Southern swept defending champion Jackson State and Southern to claim its berth, while the Hornets swept Grambling State and Alabama A&M.
In Saturday's sweep of Southern, TSU was the aggressor early on, using 10-5 run to push its lead to 18-11. Southern lessened the gap from there with a four-point spurt to get within three. The Tigers then responded with a flourish, as late kills by Ashlyn Caldwell and Audriana Carson closed the set for the Tigers.
The Tigers continued to put the pressure on the Jaguars as set two began, as the No. 2 seed were up 10-2 to begin the frame. Southern mounted some offense, but derailed its own momentum with consecutive errors. The Tigers took advantage, eventually amassing a double-digit lead (19-9) that the Tigers used as a springboard to a 2-0 set lead.
Set three was more of the same, as the Tigers were quickly in the driver's seat. Texas Southern posted an 8-3 start to the frame. That five-point cushion would hold through the set,
Kali Fluke and Alexis Austin knocked down eight kills apiece in the win over Southern. Asia Howard added 15 assists, while Allison Woods led the defensive effort with 14 digs.
Courtesy: TSU Athletics
JACKSON, Miss. – The top two seeds will face off for the SWAC Volleyball Tournament crown as Alabama State and Texas Southern square off at 3 pm Sunday afternoon from the Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center from the campus of Jackson State University.
The match will be shown on ESPN3. A link to watch the match will be provided when made available.
Alabama State heads into the match-up with a 23-8 record on the year while Texas Southern carries in a 22-10 record for the season.
While this is Alabama State's fourth-straight berth in the Championship match, this ends a 22-year drought for Texas Southern, who last made it to the finals during their 1994 SWAC championship season. Since then, every other team in the SWAC has made at least two appearances in the title game. Alabama State will vie for its third title in four years.
Alabama State has defeated Texas Southern in the teams' last five meetings, as the Hornets bounced Texas Southern in the 2015 tournament -- beating the Lady Tigers both times during the double-elimination tournament -- and also swept the 2016 season series.
Both sides have advanced to the finals without much trouble. Texas Southern swept defending champion Jackson State and Southern to claim its berth, while the Hornets swept Grambling State and Alabama A&M.
In Saturday's sweep of Southern, TSU was the aggressor early on, using 10-5 run to push its lead to 18-11. Southern lessened the gap from there with a four-point spurt to get within three. The Tigers then responded with a flourish, as late kills by Ashlyn Caldwell and Audriana Carson closed the set for the Tigers.
The Tigers continued to put the pressure on the Jaguars as set two began, as the No. 2 seed were up 10-2 to begin the frame. Southern mounted some offense, but derailed its own momentum with consecutive errors. The Tigers took advantage, eventually amassing a double-digit lead (19-9) that the Tigers used as a springboard to a 2-0 set lead.
Set three was more of the same, as the Tigers were quickly in the driver's seat. Texas Southern posted an 8-3 start to the frame. That five-point cushion would hold through the set,
Kali Fluke and Alexis Austin knocked down eight kills apiece in the win over Southern. Asia Howard added 15 assists, while Allison Woods led the defensive effort with 14 digs.
Courtesy: TSU Athletics