South Alabama’s women’s volleyball team secured its first win of the season on Friday, defeating Central Michigan 3-1 at the Panther Invitational in Milwaukee. The match took place at the Klotsche Center.
Sarah Gooch led the Jaguars with a match-high 20 kills, eight digs, and a .381 hitting percentage. Cambria Gaier contributed 12 kills, two aces, and four blocks while hitting .370. Dalayla Blackwell added nine kills and three block assists. Alexa Strandberg anchored the defense with five total blocks and recorded a career-high three aces.
Anna Loberg finished just short of a double-double, tallying 37 assists and nine digs. Briana Wilson led South Alabama defensively with 18 digs.
Central Michigan was paced by Izzy Swiercz’s 10 kills, while Abby Olin had six total blocks for the Chippewas.
Head coach Jesse Ortiz commented on the team’s performance: “We came out really strong in the first set. I thought our team did a tremendous job and that Anna (Loberg) did a great job running the offense. Sarah (Gooch) and Cambria (Gaier) were great in the ‘pins’ and Dalayla (Blackwell) was excellent up the middle. You could see the team was really honoring her a ton. Central Michigan has the makings of a great squad and they were really getting after us. I’m really glad for us to get that first one. Tomorrow is going to be a dog-fight, so we’re hoping for a good match.”
The Jaguars took control early in set one with an extended run after breaking an initial tie, finishing with an efficient offensive showing (.429 hitting percentage). In set two, Central Michigan responded by using their own scoring run to even up the match as they hit .536 as a team.
South Alabama regained momentum in set three behind another key run sparked by Gaier’s kill and solo block contributions. The fourth set saw South Alabama secure victory after Gooch clinched her 20th kill when Central Michigan narrowed the gap late.
This meeting marked the first time these two programs have faced each other in volleyball competition. The Jaguars’ ten service aces represented their first double-digit ace performance since September 2024 against Alabama State.
Other notable achievements included Gooch recording her third career match with at least 20 kills; Wilson continuing her streak of posting at least 15 digs in most recent matches; Blackwell registering her thirteenth career game with three or more blocks; and Gaier achieving double-digit kills for the first time in her collegiate career.
South Alabama will continue play at the Panther Invitational against Iowa State on Saturday afternoon.
For more information about South Alabama Volleyball or updates throughout their season, fans can follow @SouthAlabamaVB on Twitter or visit USAJaguars.com.
