VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State volleyball team concludes the 2021 regular season this weekend on the road as it travels to Montgomery, Ala., to face Auburn Montgomery on Friday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. E.T., and then to Carrollton, Ga., on Nov. 13 facing West Georgia at 6 p.m.
 
VSU enters the final week of the regular season looking to qualify for the Gulf South Conference tournament for the fourth-straight season.  The Blazers are 12-18 overall and 5-9 in Gulf South Conference and are tied with Lee in the standings.  VSU and Lee sit a half game behind Mississippi College in the standings and two games back of Montevallo who is seventh in the standings.  The top eight teams qualify for the Gulf South Conference championship, scheduled for Nov. 19-21 at the University of West Florida in Pensacola, Fla.
 
The last time the Blazers faced the Warhawks of Auburn Montgomery was in March of 2021 when AMU came out victorious 3-0, in Valdosta.  Auburn Montgomery is currently fifth in GSC standings as it is 16-12 overall and 7-5 in conference.  AUM owns a 5-4 record in the series with the Blazers, as the Warhawks have won the last five meetings.  VSU's last win came in Valdosta with a 3-1 victory on Oct. 23, 2018.  The Blazers and the Warhawks have split four meetings in Montgomery, Ala.
 
Following the match against the Warhawks, VSU travels to Carrollton, Ga., to face the Wolves of West Georgia in the Red Clay Rivalry Series.  UWG won a five-set match in Valdosta on Sept. 24 and would need to win Saturday to claim the Red Clay Rivalry Series point.  VSU owns a 4-0 lead in the series this season placing higher in both men's and women's cross country at the GSC Championship in October, along with victories in women's soccer and football.  If VSU wins Saturday's match, each team would get a half-a-point for the series.   
 
VSU leads the series with UWG at 13-8 since 2010, but the Wolves have won the last four matches, including the match earlier this season.  VSU's last win in the series came with a 3-1 decision in Valdosta on Oct. 27, 2018.  The Blazers last victory in Carrollton came in a 3-1 victory on Sept. 17, 2016.   UWG has won six of the last ten matches in the series in Carrollton, including three-straight.
 
The Wolves are 14-14 overall and 8-7 in the GSC as they already have clinched a GSC Championship berth.  They have won three-straight matches after dropping five-straight and 12 of the last 17.
 
The Blazers are coming off a loss against Union University on Sunday, Nov. 7, in the Complex, as they hosted Senior Day and recognized six seniors before the intense five-set match, where VSU held a 2-1 lead through three sets, before falling 31-29 in the fourth set and 15-10 in the decisive set.  Last Friday, VSU posted a 3-0 victory over Christian Brothers, snapping a six-match skid.
 
This season, the Blazers are first in the GSC and 16th nationally in total attacks with 4,021, while the Blazers are fourth in the GSC in assists (1,221) for 31st nationally.  VSU is third in the GSC and 41st nationally in team digs with 1,754 and fifth in the GSC for 44th nationally in team kills (1,296).  The Blazers are sixth in the GSC and 79th nationally in service aces with 164.  
 
Individually, senior Tammy Reyes-Perez is second in the GSC in assists per set (9.40), while she is 11th nationally (second in GSC) in total assists with 1,043. Redshirt freshman Lyara Rosario is 23rd nationally and first in the GSC in total digs with 536.  She also leads the GSC in digs per set at a 4.79 clip for 64th nationally.  Freshman Jojo Smith, is second in the GSC in kills per set, averaging 3.82 on the season and has recorded 275 kills for the year as she is also first in the GSC in points with 315 total with an average of 4.38 per set.
  
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