Anderson Reaches 3,000 Assists as Troy Outlasts App State

Friday, November 6

Troy, Ala.

11 a.m.

Troy University

7-4,7-4Sun Belt

Appalachian State

1-8,1-8Sun Belt

App State

Troy

Anderson Reaches 3,000 Assists as Troy Outlasts App State

11/6/2020 3:23:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. – Amara Anderson became the sixth Trojan in school history to reach 3,000 career assists as Troy defeated Appalachian State Friday morning in Trojan Arena. The Trojans survived a marathon 37-35 fourth set to avoid a fifth set as Troy moved past the Mountaineers, 3-1 (25-19, 21-25, 25-22, 37-35).

Troy (7-4, 7-4 SBC) had its best match of the season from the service line, tying a school record (four-set match) with 14 services aces against the Mountaineers (1-8, 1-8 SBC).

Anderson turned in an impressive 43 assist performance to go along with seven digs and an ace while Lacey Jeffcoat turned in 21 digs to move herself into a tie for ninth place on Troy's all-time digs list.

Freshman Tori Hester continues to get more comfortable in the Trojan rotation as she posted a career-best 16 kills and three aces. Halston Hillier added 11 kills on .241 hitting to become the second Trojan in double figures on the match.

Set One:
The Troy Trojans started the match quickly, taking an early 4-1 lead Friday morning. After the Mountaineers scored back-to-back points to cut the Trojan advantage to 4-3, Caitlin Cooper and Halston Hillier powered the Trojans to six of the next seven points to give Troy a 10-4 lead. After App State cut the Troy advantage to just 14-12, the Trojans won eight of the next 11 to take a 22-15 lead. As they did the entire first set, the Mountaineers had a brief answer, using a 4-0 run to cut the Troy advantage to just 22-19. Needing a big response, Troy quickly answered using an ace from Natalie Hummel and a block from Cooper to take the opening set 25-19. In the opening set freshman Tori Hester led the way with five kills on .429 hitting while Hillier hit .300 and recorded four kills.

Set Two:
After the Trojans scored two of the first three points, App State responded with an 8-2 run to take a 9-4 advantage. After a Mountaineer service error, back-to-back points from Hester cut the App State margin to just 9-7. The Mountaineers answered the mini 3-0 Troy run with a 4-1 spurt to extend their advantage to 13-8. The Trojans would answer with a 4-1 run to cut the Mountaineer lead to just 14-12. After a pair of points from the visitors, Anderson set up back-to-back kills from Tabitha Wheeler and Hillier. A Jeffcoat ace brought the Trojans within a point at 16-15, but App used a 4-1 run to take a 20-16 lead. Five of the next seven points went to the Trojans to cut the App State advantage to 22-21, but three consecutive points from the visitors evened the match at one set a piece, 25-21.

Set Three:
The Trojans started the third set quickly, scoring the first three points of the set. App State quickly responded scoring eight of the next nine points to take an 8-4 advantage to force a Troy timeout. Needing to regain momentum, the Trojans used a 3-0 run and a later 7-0 run to take 11 of the next 13 points. Up 15-10, the Trojans used another 7-1 outburst to seize a 22-12 advantage. App State scored 10 of the next 12 points to close to within 24-22, but one last Hillier kill give the Trojans the third set.

Set Four:
The Trojans opened the fourth set with a 10-6 advantage before the Mountaineers tallied seven of the next 10 points to tie the set at 13-13. After the Trojans scored three-straight points highlighted by a block from Cooper and a service ace from Hester, App State scored back-to-back points to cut the Troy advantage to just 16-15. Troy scored the next four points to seize a 20-15 advantage. After the Trojans and Mountaineers split the next eight points, the Mountaineers fought off five Troy match points to tie the set at 24-24. Following a Trojan timeout, the Mountaineers scored to take a 25-24 lead before Troy scored back-to-back points to retake the lead at 26-25. App State responded with back-to-back points of their own go in front 27-26. Following a Mountaineer service error which tied the set at 27-27, the two squads split the next 16 points, bringing the set to a 35-35 deadlock. With the score tied, an App State service error and attacking error gave the Trojans a 37-35 fourth-set victory.

Notable

Troy improved to 20-1 inside Trojan Arena over the last two seasons.
The Trojans recorded 14 service aces which tied a school record in a four-set match (2007 vs. South Alabama)
With 43 assists on the match, Amara Anderson became the sixth Trojan in school history to record 3,000 career assists.
Lacey Jeffcoat moved into a tie for ninth place on Troy's all-time digs list with a 21-dig performance.
Tori Hester posted a career-best 16 kills in the outing.