LIVINGSTON, Ala. – The Valdosta State volleyball team (6-11) defeated the West Alabama Tigers (6-10) in four sets (25-22, 25-21, 23-25, 25-19) at Pruitt Hall in Livingston on Saturday afternoon. The victory was the 100^th head coaching win in the career of Blazer leader Kaleigh Zoucha. Zoucha has led the Blazers to a 5-3 record in Gulf South Conference play this season.

The sides battled early in the opening set, with seniors Sabrina Oncins, Ava Young, and Katie Callenberger recording the first three Blazer kills. A Tiger error tied the match 4-4. Sophomore Avery Mullins dropped in a kill then Callenberger teamed up with junior Asia Montagnani for a block, 6-4 Blazers.

The teams tied at every point from 6-6 to 13-13. The Blazer offense was powered by kills from Montagnani, Callenberger, Young, Oncins, Mullins, and sophomore Eva LaRochelle during the stretch. Two more kills off the arm of Montagnani pushed the Blazers ahead 16-14.

The Blazer attack kept knocking down kills on their way to a first set win. LaRochelle (2), Callenberger (2), Young (2), and Oncins put away huge kills down the stretch to keep the Blazers in front. Finally, Montagnani buried another kill to earn the 25-22 win.

Young put down a kill to open the second set then teamed up with Montagnani for a block. An ace from graduate Macy Brown saw VSU jump in front 4-0 early. Young and Callenberger knocked down back-to-back kills, then a Tiger error pushed the advantage to 7-2.

Montagnani and Callenberger put down kills in quick succession. Another Tiger error made it 10-6 Blazers. Cadence Goeden put away three straight Tiger kills to cut the deficit to 10-9. The next two Blazer kills came from LaRochelle. Another from Oncins gave VSU a 14-13 lead.

Montagnani and Young worked together for their second and third combined blocks of the match on back-to-back plays. Another kill from Montagnani followed by a pair of Tiger errors made it 21-19 Blazers. LaRochelle put away another kill then an error moved VSU within match point. Young put away yet another kill to win the set 25-21.

Consecutive kills from LaRochelle gave the Blazers their first two points of the third set. Another from Montagnani and a service ace from junior Eimy Negron Domenech pushed VSU ahead 5-4. The Blazer attack continued knocking down kills at an impressive pace, gaining points from Oncins (3), Callenberger (2), and Montagnani on their way to a 13-11 lead. Young and Oncins worked together on a block to make it 14-11.

The next three Blazer kills came off the arm of Montagnani. Oncins and Callenberger teamed up for a block, then the latter stepped up for a solo rejection to make it 19-15. The Tigers gained several kills to storm back and knot the set at 19-19. LaRochelle (2) and Mullins put down kills to edge the Blazers in front, but the Tigers managed to keep things tied at 22. LaRochelle put down one more kill but ultimately UWA pulled out a 25-23 win to stay alive in the match by a deficit of 2-1.

The fourth set opened with yet another kill from Oncins. She then teamed up with Young for a block to tie the set 2-2. Negron Domenech served her second ace then a Tiger error made it 4-2. West Alabama fought back for a small lead before kills from LaRochelle and Callenberger tied the set 7-7.

Kills from LaRochelle, Montagnani, and Oncins (2) worked with several UWA errors to power the Blazers ahead 14-11. More kills from Montagnani (2) and LaRochelle (3) kept the offense pumping on its way to a 20-16 lead. Young put down a kill then teamed up for back-to-back blocks with Montagnani to move VSU within match point. Finally, Montagnani stepped up for the set (25-19) and match (3-1) winning kill.

Sophomore Eva LaRochelle (.364 clip) and junior Asia Montagnani (.220 clip) tied to lead the team and match in kills with 16 each. Seniors Sabrina Oncins and Katie Callenberger knocked down ten and nine kills respectively. Senior Ava Young tallied six kills on 11 attempts at a team-high .636 clip.

Young also assisted on eight different blocks to tally a team-high four total blocks. Sophomore Avery Mullins added 45 assists, the second most in a match during her Blazer career. Junior Eimy Negron Domenech led the Blazers in both service aces (2) and digs (22).

Looking Forward

The Blazers return home to the Complex for two matches next weekend. The team opens next weekend's slate with Trevecca Nazarene (14-3) at 6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 17th. They will then shift their focus to Lee (9-8) on Saturday at 1 p.m. Check back with vstateblazers.com and the volleyball schedule page for streaming options and access to live stats.

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