Box Score STATESBORO, Ga. – UALR got off to a rocky start against Georgia Southern, but it was still able to pull off its seventh consecutive victory and remain undefeated in the Sun Belt after winning 3-1 (21-25, 25-19, 28-26, 25-21).
Senior Edina Begic once again led the Trojans' offense by racking up 22 kills and came one dig short of a double-double.
Junior Sonja Milanovic earned her fifth double-double of the season with 12 kills and a season-high 22 digs. Milanovic's 22 digs tied the career-high she set last year against Southeast Missouri State.
UALR's match-winning fourth set was back and forth until both teams tied the frame at 16. UALR went on a 5-2 run before Georgia Southern took its last timeout of the afternoon. The Eagles gained some traction but four Trojan kills wrapped up the set and match. UALR outhit Georgia Southern .265-.081 in the final frame, and Begic posted six kills on 12 attempts.
The tightest set of the afternoon came in the third as both squads remained tied at 26-26 going into extra points. An attack error and a bad set cost Georgia Southern the frame and turned out to be the breaking point of the match. Despite being on the losing end of kills, hitting percentage and assists, the Trojans made it work by having three more team blocks and two fewer errors than the Eagles.
The second set is where UALR would find its momentum. After the Trojans started the frame with a 7-3 lead, Georgia Southern would fight back and eventually tie the set at 15. After a kill by Milanovic, the Eagles helped the Trojans out by committing four consecutive attack errors, giving UALR a 20-15 lead. Georgia Southern got within two after a kill, service ace, and a UALR attack error. However, this ended up being the Eagles' last scoring run of the set as the Trojans then went on a 5-1 run of their own to win their first set of the day. UALR held Georgia Southern to a -.081 hitting percentage during the set, and racked up 14 kills to the Eagles' six.
UALR started the first set with a 5-2 lead before Georgia Southern responded to tie the set at 5. The set was deadlocked at 15-15 until the Eagles went on a 5-0 run to take the lead. The Trojans tried to gain some ground by getting within three at 22-19, but it was the closest they would come as the Eagles found the final two points to win the first set.
Sophomore setter Megan Mathis earned 44 assists and two blocks on the afternoon, marking her 10th match of the season with at least 30 assists, her sixth consecutive match with at least 30 and her third with at least 40.
Edina Selimovic helped the Trojans' defense with seven total blocks (one solo and six assisted) and added seven kills. Also with seven kills and two block assists was redshirt sophomore Carolee Dillard. Senior Adisa Hodzic had the second-highest block total with four.
As a team, the Trojans outhit the Eagles .208-.104. UALR's 63 digs is its highest total of the season.
The Trojans return to action on Friday (Oct. 10) as they travel to Lafayette, La., to play their second match against Louisiana. UALR then returns home to once again face Georgia State on Sunday (Oct. 12).
