South Alabama’s women’s volleyball team secured a 3-1 victory over Troy on Saturday afternoon at Jag Gym, completing a series sweep in Sun Belt Conference play. Junior outside hitter Sarah Gooch led the Jaguars with a season-high 23 kills and an attacking percentage of .475. She also contributed two solo blocks and one block assist.
The Jaguars improved to a 7-6 overall record and 2-0 in the conference. Head coach Jesse Ortiz commented on the rivalry and preparation: “If you know anything about our two schools, you know that we get after each other in every sport. We knew the match was going to be a dogfight. We had prepped hard last week for this series. Troy is a formidable group, but we felt good on our home floor.”
Ortiz also praised Gooch’s performance: “Sarah was unbelievable today. What she did out there was some super-human stuff. She’s a warrior, has the will to fight and will to win. She wants to be out on the floor the entire time. When I have her and Anna (Loberg) connecting like they are, it’s a pretty awesome thing for us.”
Gooch expressed satisfaction with starting conference play strongly: “It’s really good to open conference play with a sweep. Troy’s a rival for us, so we know that no matter the other’s record, it’s going to be a dogfight every time we face each other. Jag Gym came out for us both matches and it was a lot of fun.” Reflecting on her own performance, she said: “I had seams out there and Anna (Loberg) was giving me some great balls. We really wanted to win the match. We wanted to take the match in three sets, but I’m proud of our group and their tenacity to keep pushing and not let Troy back in it.”
In addition to Gooch’s efforts, Cambria Gaier reached double digits with 13 kills while Alexa Strandberg recorded five blocks and Maradith O’Gorman added three more blocks defensively.
For Troy (2-8, 0-2 SBC), Amiah Butler finished with 15 kills and Brooke Forkum contributed 12.
South Alabama opened strong in set one with an early run led by Gooch’s consecutive kills and maintained control throughout most of the frame. In set two, Gooch delivered seven of South Alabama’s final eight points—including four straight kills—helping the Jaguars rally from behind for a narrow win.
Troy claimed set three despite South Alabama closing within one point late in the frame; Sydney Austin sealed it for Troy with a kill.
In set four, Gaier and Gooch sparked crucial runs late as South Alabama pulled away for victory.
The meeting marked the 89th between these teams since Troy joined the Sun Belt Conference in 2005; South Alabama now leads the all-time series 53-36 overall and holds a strong home record against Troy at Jag Gym.
Several individual streaks continued during this match: Gaier has now posted four or more kills in 19 sets this fall; Gooch achieved double-digit kills nine times this season—23 times in her career—and recorded six or more kills in multiple matches recently; Anna Loberg has served aces consistently across recent games; O’Gorman has posted multi-block performances frequently; Briana Wilson continues her streak of high dig totals almost every match.
South Alabama will next travel for two matches against ULM beginning Friday at 6 p.m.
