Trojans Open Tournament Play Against Arkansas State

Friday, November 18

Foley, Ala.

12 p.m.

Troy University

Arkansas State

Trojans Open Tournament Play Against Arkansas State

11/17/2022 4:12:00 PM | Volleyball

Match Notes

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. – The Trojans look to carry the momentum from their historic regular season into the Sun Belt Conference Tournament as they prepare to square off with Arkansas State in the quarterfinals Friday at Noon on ESPN+.

After their first 11 conference win season in program history, the Trojans secured a double-bye in the tournament as the second seed in the west division.

"I believe this is going to be an extremely competitive tournament," head coach Josh Lauer said. "There are some outstanding teams and terrific coaches in our conference. Our focus is to enjoy each match, compete hard, and have fun together as a team. When we do those three things, we play our best. It sounds simple, but at this point in the season, it comes down to who can just be themselves and be confident and compete with great effort."

The Matchup: Troy (17-11, 11-5) vs. Arkansas State (9-21, 2-14)
Where: Foley, Ala.
When: Friday, November 16 – 12 p.m.
Watch: ESPN+

This will be the third matchup with the Red Wolves this season. Troy swept the season series back in October, as the two wins were a part of their program-high nine-game win streak.

Earlier in the week, Amara Anderson, Tori Hester, and Julia Brooks were named to the All-Conference teams. Anderson and Hester earned first-team accolades, while Brooks earned second-team honors. This marks the fifth straight year that at least one Trojan has been recognized as a member of the all-conference teams.

If the Trojans look to make it to their first Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship match, they will rely on the strong play from all three.

In her senior season with the Trojans, Anderson totaled 1127 assists, averaging 10.44 assists per set, giving her four seasons, with Troy totaling over 1000 assists, with only the covid shortened season being the exception. As a result, Anderson became the only Trojan to amass 5000 career assists, as she is now the leader in Troy program history. At the same time, she is ranking third among Sun Belt setters in career assists.

Hester cemented herself as one of the top attackers in the Sun Belt Conference. Her 466 kills (12^th in the nation) were the third most by a Trojan player in a single season in program history as she averaged 4.28 kills per set (19^th in the country) and are both the second most among all players in the conference. Hester started every match and played in 109 sets as one of two players in the conference to have over 500 total points finishing with 527.5, which was top ten in the country.

Brooks had another outstanding season for the Trojans as she became the Troy all-time leader in career solo blocks and total blocks this season. Brooks had the seventh-best hitting percentage in the conference at .315, seeing eight games hitting better than .400 to go along with 306 kills, including a season-high of 21 coming against rival South Alabama Brooks' 31 solo blocks this season were the fourth most by a Trojan in a single season. In addition, Brooks reached 1000 kills on the year, putting her in ninth place on Troy's all-time career kill list.

In addition, freshman Amiah Butler had one of the best seasons for any freshman in the conference. Butler totaled 195 kills in conference play, being the only freshman to average more than three kills per set (3.36) and 328 kills overall, which are second on Troy. In 58 conference sets, Butler totaled 211.5 points as the only freshman to amass 200 points, averaging 3.65 points per set. Butler recorded 19 matches with double-digit kills, including a stretch of nine straight. Butler saw a career-high 20 kills against Arkansas State, putting her in the top five for most kills in a match for a first-year student. Butler added four assists, 82 digs, and 38 blocks on the year, culminating a fantastic statical year for the Trojan freshman.

Know Your Opponent:
Arkansas State: The Red Wolves come into Friday's match on a two-game win streak having beat Georgia State and Old Dominion already in the tournament. However, Arkansas State has dropped five of the last six matches to Troy. The Trojans and Red Wolves met in the quarterfinals of the 2019 Sun Belt Conference Tournament, where Troy came back to win in five sets.