Troy Takes Two Matches and Trojan Invitational Title

Friday, September 5

Troy, Ala.

9:30 a.m.

Troy University

6-1

Alabama A&M

1-5

Team	1	2	3	Final F
Alabama A&M	15	23	22	0
Troy	25	25	25	3

Photo by: Jonah Enfinger

Troy Takes Two Matches and Trojan Invitational Title

9/5/2014 11:18:00 AM | Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: Matt Mays

Tournament Central | Box Score (JSU) | Box Score (AAMU)
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TROY, Alabama – The Troy volleyball team completed a perfect 3-0 weekend at its own Trojan Invitational and took the tournament title after wins over Alabama A&M and Jacksonville State on Friday at Trojan Arena.

Troy (7-1) defeated Alabama A&M, 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 25-22), on Friday morning before knocking off Jacksonville State, 3-1 (25-13, 25-17, 19-25, 25-15), with the tournament title on the line on Friday night.

Blair Winston was named the tournament MVP while Kiah Cheatham, Darby Griff and Symone Shaw were also named to the all-tournament team.

The 7-1 start to the season matches the best start in Troy's Division I history, tying the 2002 time that also started 7-1 before closing the year with a 20-11 record.

"We've battled, playing eight matches in seven days," Troy head coach Sonny Kirkpatrick said. "We build a schedule for a reason, to test their limits and make them mentally strong, and they've really had a great week and I couldn't be more proud of them."

The Trojans now return to the court on Tuesday when they travel to take on Alabama State. Troy will then take on Auburn, South Florida and Winthrop in the Active Ankle Challenge hosted by Auburn next weekend.

TROY 3, JACKSONVILLE STATE 1

Winston posted a match-high 18 kills as Troy hit an outstanding .347 in a 3-1 (25-13, 25-17, 19-25, 25-15) win over Jacksonville State to take the Trojan Invitational tournament title.

Winston hit .359 with just four errors while Cheatham hit a team-high .526 thanks to 12 kills and just two errors on 19 swings. Shaw had 12 kills as well with just one error as Troy posted just 12 errors on four sets as a team.

The Trojans did not record an error in the fourth set as they hit .519 on their way to the third of three dominant set wins. Tineille Waggoner recorded 42 assists as she led the Trojans to their third match with an attack percentage over .300 on the season.

Ali Dowdall led the Trojans with 13 digs while Kelley Curran was also in double figures with 11 to hold Jacksonville State (2-5) to a .138 team attack percentage.

Troy posted a season-high 10 service aces with Curran, Cheatham and Marija Zelenovic all recorded three apiece.

The Gamecocks were led by Allyson Zuhlke who posted 15 kills and one error on 30 attempts for a .467 attack percentage.

TROY 3, ALABAMA A&M 0

The Trojans got some young players in the match and picked up a 3-0 (25-15, 25-23, 25-22) sweep of Alabama A&M on Friday morning at Trojan Arena.

Troy held the Bulldogs to an .037 attack percentage and moved to 2-0 in the Trojan Invitational after a five-set win over Mercer on Thursday night. The Trojans will take on Jacksonville State at 7 p.m. in the final match of the Trojan Invitational.

The Trojans were led offensively by Shaw who had 10 kills and just one error on 24 swings for a .375 attack percentage. True freshman Rachel Skibba had eight kills for Troy.

True freshman setter Reina Terry posted 24 assists for the Trojans and was one of three with a team-high seven digs. Dowdall and Zelenovic also posted seven digs each.

Troy posted 8.0 total team blocks in the match with a team-high four coming from Skibba. The Trojans held Alabama A&M (1-5) to a -.121 attack percentage in the opening set and a .030 mark in the final set.

The Trojans posted a then season-high nine service aces in the match, led by four from freshman Avalon Nero.

Alabama A&M was led by Ashundria McNeal who posted 10 kills and a .389 attack percentage.

For more information on Troy volleyball, follow the Trojans on Twitter at @TroyTrojansVB. For more information Troy Athletics, visit TroyTrojans.com. Fans can also find the Trojans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube by searching for Troy Athletics.