Butler Notches Career High as Troy Takes Down Arkansas State

Friday, October 14

Jonesboro, Ark.

6 p.m.

Troy University

11-8,5-2Sun Belt

Arkansas State

5-14,0-7Sun Belt

Troy

Arkansas St.

Butler Notches Career High as Troy Takes Down Arkansas State

10/14/2022 9:27:00 PM | Volleyball

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By: Troy Athletics Communications

JONESBORO, Ark. – Trailing 23-20 in the fourth set, it looked like Troy was on its way to another match heading into the fifth set. However, Julia Brooks and Amiah Butler would not let that happen as the two combined for three straight kills to tie the set, and two errors from Arkansas State sealed the Trojan's fourth consecutive victory (25-20, 25-23, 26-28, 25-23) Friday night.

"We really overcame some adversity tonight and showed a lot of resilience," head coach Josh Lauer said. "Our play late in sets was the difference for us, and some very clutch serving by Tori and Jaci. Tori and Amiah carried a big offensive load tonight and made plays when we needed them. They both showed a lot of grit. Julia was our heartbeat tonight, and the team fed off her energy all night long."

For Troy (11-8, 5-2), Butler had a career-high 20 kills to lead all players. Brooks finished the night with a strong offensive and defensive performance after 17 kills and six total blocks, including the match-sealing block. Brooks is now two solo blocks away from becoming Troy's all-time leader, as she currently sits at 83 for her career.

Tori Hester had her sixth consecutive double-double with 18 kills and 20 digs, a season and career high for her. Freshman Jaci Mesa saw her third game this season with 20 digs, and Amara Anderson had 53 assists and 16 digs for a double-double.

Arkansas State (5-14, 0-7) has now lost 13 straight games. Kassidy Reeves led the Red Wolves with 18 kills. The host hit .148 on the evening as they saw five players tally double-digit digs, with Sarah Martinez finishing with 21.

Set One: The Trojans saw a six-point deficit at one point that they would erase after scoring six straight points to take a 19-18 lead. With it tied at 20-20, Brooks would secure the first point of five straight with a kill as Troy won the set 25-20.

Set Two: The second set saw a match-high 12 ties with six lead changes. Troy found themselves down 22-20 before rattling off three straights with two kills from Butler. After an attacking error from Butler to tie the set at 23, Anderson kept feeding her as she gave Troy the advantage, with Hester closing it out and putting Troy up two sets.

Set Three: Despite the set having the lowest attack percentage for Troy at .019, they were close to securing their second straight sweep. The Trojans saw a four-point advantage, but Arkansas State was able to battle back. The Red Wolves were up 24-21, but another four-point rally from Troy flipped things as they looked to close the match. However, the host didn't want to see the match end so soon, as they eventually took the set 28-26.

Set Four: The 17 kills in the set were the most in the match for Troy. Brooks and Hester each totaled five kills, with Anderson putting up 13 assists. The Red Wolves looked to be cruising and sending the match into the fifth set up 21-15. The Trojans slowly fought their way back down 23-20 as Butler and Brooks combined for four of the last five Trojan points

Up Next: Troy and Arkansas State will meet again tomorrow, Oct. 5, at 1 p.m. from Jonesboro as Troy goes for their fifth straight win.