McClelland Sets Record But Trojans Fall

Tuesday, November 1

Troy, Ala.

7:00 p.m.

Troy University

University of South Alabama

11/1/2011 9:38:00 PM | Volleyball

By: Matt Mays

Box Score

TROY, Ala. – The Troy volleyball team started a stretch of five-straight at home on Tuesday night with a loss to South Alabama, 3-1. The Trojans (15-11, 5-7) lost the first two sets, but seemed to be on the comeback trail when they won set three. The Jaguars (9-15, 4-8) however were able to close out the match with a win in set four.

Brittany McClelland did make a little history for the Trojans on Tuesday night as she posted seven block assists, bringing her career total to 232, breaking Meghan Gilroy's school record.

The Trojans return to the floor this weekend when they host Middle Tennessee and WKU on Friday and Saturday at Sartain Hall. Check back with TroyTrojans.com for a preview of those matches. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter @TroyAthletics or on Facebook.

SOUTH ALABAMA 3, TROY 1 (27-25, 25-22, 24-26, 25-22)

Devin Von Pingel led the Trojans offensively on the night with 14 kills while Breanna Cullity was also in double-digits at 13. Alexandra Alexander posted 40 assists as the Trojans hit .113 on the night.

South Alabama out-hit the Trojans by posting a .163 mark. Courtney Cohen led the Trojans defense with 18 digs while Lizzie Clough posted 16. McClelland finished the night with seven block assists and one solo block for eight total blocks.

The first set was a tight one as the two sides were tied on 10 different occasions. A little history was made early as McClelland recorded her first block assist to bring her career total to 226, setting a new school record, and giving the Trojans an early 2-0 lead.

Troy would go on to hit just .140 in the set while the Jags posted a .220 percentage. The Trojans out-blocked the Jags 4.0 to 1.0 in the first set, but South Alabama's one block was the one that really counted as they sent back a Troy attack with the Trojans trailing 25-26 to take a 27-25 first-set victory.

The Trojans would out-hit the Jaguars .333 to .289 in the second set, but a late five-point run by USA turned a 19-19 score into a 24-19 lead for the Jags as they went on to take the set 25-22.

The Trojans actually had their worst hitting set of the match in the third as they hit .111. South Alabama wasn't much better as they posted a .140 mark, but they had the Trojans on the ropes at 24-22. It was at that point that a kill by Mailande Parker sparked the Trojans to a four-point run, including two Von Pingel kills, to take the third set, 26-24.

Both sides struggled in the fourth set as South Alabama hit .000 while the Trojans posted a -.105 mark. Troy jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the set and held onto that lead until USA pulled even at 15-15. The Jags scored four straight at that point to take a 19-15 lead before taking the set, 25-22.