Troy Kicks Off Crimson Tide Invitational With Historic Win Over Alabama

Thursday, September 2

Tuscaloosa, Ala.

7 p.m.

Troy University

2-1,0-0Sun Belt

Alabama

3-1,0-0SEC

Troy

Alabama

Troy Kicks Off Crimson Tide Invitational With Historic Win Over Alabama

9/2/2021 11:10:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Troy vs Alabama

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TUSCALOOSA, Al. – Troy Volleyball made history Thursday night at Foster Auditorium to open the Crimson Tide Invitational with a 3-1 win (20-25, 25-16, 25-23, 32-30) over Alabama. This was the Trojan's first win over Alabama since 1974 and first win over an SEC school in 25 years.

Cheyenne Hayes and Tori Hester led the Trojans (2-1), each rerecording a double-double. Hayes had 17 kills and 11 digs, while Hester finished with 12 kills and 12 digs. Julia Brooks followed suit with 16 kills and a .424 hitting percentage. Amara Anderson was her usual self, leading the match with 49 assists, also recording four kills on six total attempts.

Alabama (3-1) was led by Abby Marjama and Kennedy Muckelroy, who tallied 13 kills each to lead the Crimson Tide. Alabama finished with 20 attack errors after only recording 16 in their first three games.

"This was a tremendously gritty team win," head coach Josh Lauer said. "We talk a lot about having good competitive composure. I'm so proud of how well we handled the late set pressure. It was one of our focus points this week. We have a lot of mature experience on the court, and they all played their roles very well tonight. We will enjoy this win tonight, but we are right back at it tomorrow."

First Set: Troy fell behind early after a 14-4 run by the Crimson Tide to open up the first set. But Troy would go on a run of their own after a service ace from Anderson brought the Trojans within four. Then, after back-to-back kills from Hester saw the Trojans within three to make the score 23-20, Alabama would go on and close it out and take the set 25-20.

Second Set: It was a different story in the second set for Troy. They doubled their total kills from the first set, finishing with 16, and had a match high .387 hitting percentage. The Trojans didn't trail once during the second set seeing their largest lead of the game of 11, after back-to-back kills by Brooks and Anderson. Alabama showed a fight, but Hayes added to her hitting clinic to seal the set 25-16.

Third Set: The momentum didn't stop for the Trojans after they jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead to start the set, with Jeffcoat contributing seven straight digs. Alabama wouldn't go quietly, cutting the Trojans lead to one at 24-23. But once again, Hayes was there to close it out with a kill to give the Trojans the set 25-23 and a one-set advantage.

Fourth Set: The fourth set saw Alabama take their first lead of the match since the first set. It was a set that saw coaches challenge from both teams at pivotal points. Troy was successful in challenging four touches by Alabama to maintain a 21-19 lead. While with the score of 23-22, Alabama was unsuccessful in their blocking challenge to keep the Trojans one-point lead in tac. Troy fended off four straight-set points and finally took the lead after Ashley Guenver coming in for the first time all year, had been put on for an injured Hester, gave the Trojans a chance to secure match point with a kill. After eight lead changes and 22 tie scores, the Trojans would win the set 32-30 and secure the historic victory with a Brooks service ace.

Up Next: The Crimson tide invitational continues as Troy squares off with Southern Miss tomorrow.