VALDOSTA, Ga. - The Valdosta State Blazer volleyball team conquered another Gulf South Conference victory on Saturday night at The Complex with a 3-0 (25-18, 25-15, 25-23) win over the Lady Bucs of Christian Brothers in Valdosta, Ga.

The Blazers improved their overall record to 12-0 and 7-0 in GSC play. Meanwhile, the Lady Bucs fell to 5-9 overall and 2-6 in conference play.

The Blazers got off to a slow start in set one as the Lady Bucs claimed an 8-4 lead. The Blazers then played a game of catchup and ultimately surpassed the Lady Bucs with a 25-18 victory. The Blazers came through with a total of 12 team kills and only five attack errors overall compared to the Lady Bucs ten attack errors.

The Lady Bucs had no answer for the Blazers in set two. Valdosta State played with heart and intensity from the first point to the last point. VSU accumulated a total of 29 kills from six different players. Antia Rodriguez-Sanchez led the set with eight kills and Jessica Codato tallied six kills, hitting at .750 for the set. The Blazers attacked key zones and eventually overpowered the Lady Bucs, 25-15.

The Lady Bucs led set three causing a 10-3 deficit. The Blazers were down but not out. The Lady Bucs and Blazers exchanged points as the score was tied 7 times throughout the set. Costly errors from the Lady Bucs allowed the Blazers to rally back and ultimately capture set three, 25-23.
Jessica Codato recorded a tremendous night for the Blazers and finished with a double-double. Codato tallied 28 assists and 10 digs overall. The senior setter also added two blocks and eight kills, producing a .800 hitting average.

"Tonight she was just about perfect hitting eight kills out of ten swings," stated Head Coach Mike Swan about Codato's stellar effort on the night. "Her defense has improved a lot including her blocking, which came through in the third set. She is the thing that makes this whole system go. The best for her is yet to come."

Antia Rodriguez-Sanchez led offensively with 11 kills. Lea Jaklen contributed 7 kills and Susanna Peonia hit a solid .312 with six kills. Natalia Campos led defensively with 13 digs.

With a tough match coming up, Coach Swan added some insight on his team.
"The thing that I like about this team is that even when we're not playing well and even when we're down, the girls still have confidence in themselves and each other."

Next up for Valdosta State, the Blazers will travel to battle No. 21 West Florida in a Gulf South Conference match on Tuesday, October 6^th in Pensacola, Fla. The match is scheduled to tip off at 7:00 p.m., with live stats and video to be provided at www.vstateblazers.com.