Volleyball Captures Fifth Straight Win

Friday, October 16

Ruston, La.

6 p.m.

Troy University

11-5,6-1Sun Belt

Louisiana Tech

7-14,0-7Sun Belt

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Troy	24	25	26	25	3
Louisiana Tech	26	18	24	22	1

Box Score (PDF)

2026 10 10 Troy VB vs. ULM Game #2_Chris Davis

Photo by: Davis Photography

10/16/2026 9:56:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. — Troy volleyball picks up its fifth-straight win in another four-set thriller (24-26, 25-18, 26-24, 25-22) in Ruston, La. on Friday night.

Troy (11-5, 6-1 SBC) put on a dominant offensive display, featuring four Trojans with double-digit kills for the first time this season

. Olivia Kwiatkowski led the attack with a season-high 14 kills, followed by Kalina Calvillo (13), Ashlynn Axtell (12), and Isa Ruether (10).

The Trojans once again found success at the service line, holding a 10-8 advantage in aces over the Bulldogs

. Kalina Calvillo, who entered the weekend ranked second in the Sun Belt in aces per set, delivered another three-ace performance

. Olivia Kwiatkowski helped steady the Trojan attack from behind the line, reaching the three-ace mark for the seventh time in her last eight matches.

Louisiana Tech (7-14, 0-7 SBC) kept the match competitive through relentless pressure at the net

. The Bulldogs out-blocked the Trojans 12–10, with seven players recording at least one block

. Violet Morrandez spearheaded the defensive effort with a team-high eight blocks

. However, it wasn't enough to secure the win, leaving the Bulldogs winless through seven conference matches.

Set 1 — Troy 24, Louisiana Tech 26
The opening set was a hard-fought battle featuring 11 ties and five lead changes

. Troy held a narrow 15–14 advantage at the media timeout and later built a 23–21 lead late in the frame

. However, a resilient Louisiana Tech squad responded with a critical 3–0 run to snatch the lead and force set point

. Despite a solid six-kill performance from Ruether, the Trojans let the first set slip away, forcing them to play from behind early.

Set 2 — Troy 25, Louisiana Tech 18
Another tightly contested set saw Troy hold a slim 15–13 lead at the media timeout

. This time, the Trojans refused to yield late in the frame, closing on a strong 6–1 run to equalize the match at one set apiece

. A stellar performance from Axtell — who delivered five kills and a solo block — helped power Troy through the second set.

Set 3 — Troy 26, Louisiana Tech 24
Troy built its most comfortable lead of the match in the third set, taking a 15–11 advantage into the media timeout

. The Trojans extended that lead to 20–15 late in the frame, but the Bulldogs answered with five consecutive points to snatch a 23–22 lead

. A missed opportunity by Louisiana Tech handed set point back to Troy, and Axtell and Calvillo combined for a clutch block to seal the set.

Set 4 — Troy 25, Louisiana Tech 22
In similar fashion, the two programs remained within arm's reach of one another throughout most of the set

. After a 6–6 tie, Troy used a 4–0 run to force a Louisiana Tech timeout

. The Trojans slowly pulled away, putting the Bulldogs against the wall with a 24–20 edge

. Louisiana Tech attempted a rally by capturing the next two points, but a service error ultimately handed the Trojans the set and their fifth straight victory

.

Quotable — Head Coach Josh Lauer
"Proud of our team for grinding out a tough win tonight," Lauer said. "We found ways to make plays at the right and our service pressure made a big difference. We had great contributions from Olivia and Ashlynn tonight — they led the way for us. We will need to be much more consistent and efficient tomorrow against a very competitive LA Tech team."

Notables

Ashlynn Axtell had a career performance, tying four career-highs including attacks (27), digs (2), blocks (9), and solo blocks (3).
Olivia Kwiatkowski set a new season-high with 14 kills and matched her career-best in blocks with four.
Haley Nash recorded a career-high six assists.
Four Trojans (Kwiatkowski, Calvillo, Axtell, and Ruether) recorded double-digit kills against the Bulldogs, marking the first time Troy has done so since Nov. 8, 2025, when the Troy topped Southern Miss in five sets.
Troy improves to 3-5 when losing the opening set.

Up Next
The Trojans and Bulldogs square off tomorrow, Oct.17, for the second match of the two-game series starting at 1 p.m. The match will be streamed exclusively on ESPN+.