Trojans Travel to Sun Belt Newcomers

STATESBORO, Georgia – The Troy volleyball team will look to snap a four-match losing streak this weekend as the Trojans travel to take on Sun Belt newcomers Georgia Southern and Appalachian State.

Troy will take on Georgia Southern on Friday at 5 p.m. CT at Statesboro High School. The Trojans will then travel to Boone, N.C., where they will play Appalachian State on Sunday at 11 a.m. CT at the Holmes Center. Live stats for both, and live video for the Appalachian State match, can be found on the volleyball schedule page at TroyTrojans.com.

Troy (9-8, 1-4) has lost four straight matches, with all four coming in five sets. The last three of those matches were played in Trojan Arena. Last weekend Troy fell to Arkansas State and Texas State, who are now a combined 8-1 in Sun Belt play.

Blair Winston has led Troy offensively this season at 3.09 kills/set. Three other Trojans are averaging over 2.00 kills/set, including Symone Shaw (2.61), Marija Zelenovic (2.40) and Kiah Cheatham (2.04).

Defensively, Ali Dowdall is averaging a team-best 4.53 digs/set, including a Sun Belt-best 6.04 digs/set in league play. The junior libero is the reigning Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week and has posted 20-plus digs in all five of Troy's conference matches.

Troy has already played both Georgia Southern and Appalachian State this season. The Trojans defeated Georgia Southern in four sets in the team's Sun Belt opener on September 17 at Trojan Arena. The second match in the current four-match losing streak came at home to Appalachian State on September 21 in five sets. Troy is now 2-3 all-time against Georgia Southern and 0-2 against Appalachian State.

Georgia Southern (1-13, 1-4) won its first match of the season last weekend, sweeping ULM on the road. The Eagles dropped their most recent match, at UL Lafayette in three sets. Friday's match between Troy and Georgia Southern is being played at Statesboro High School while the Eagles' normal home, Hanner Fieldhouse.

Appalachian State (13-2, 3-2) has lost two straight matches after starting the season 13-0. The Mountaineers lost at UL Lafayette in five sets and at home to UALR in four sets last weekend. App State will host South Alabama on Friday before hosting Troy on Sunday.

For more information on Troy Athletics, visit TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find Troy on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube by searching for Troy Athletics.

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Players Mentioned

Ali Dowdall

Symone Shaw

Blair Winston

Marija Zelenovic

Troy University Athletics

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