Volleyball Secures Weekend Road Sweep at Southern Miss

Saturday, October 3

Hattiesburg, Miss.

4 p.m.

Troy University

8-5,3-1Sun Belt

Southern Miss

11-4,2-2Sun Belt

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Troy	23	25	25	25	3
Southern Miss.	25	23	23	20	1

Box Score (PDF)

Photo by: Davis Photography

Volleyball Secures Weekend Road Sweep at Southern Miss

10/3/2026 7:06:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. — Troy volleyball completed the series sweep over Southern Miss following another four-set win (23-25, 25-23, 25-23, 25-20) Saturday afternoon.

Troy (8-5, 3-1 SBC) rode the hot hand of Isa Ruether, who put down a team-high 15 kills coming off a career-best 18-kill performance against Southern Miss on Friday

. Kalina Calvillo and Ashlynn Axtell provided balanced support on attack, chipping in 11 kills apiece to steady the Trojan offense

.

At the net, Troy extended its double-digit block streak to four matches, posting 11 total blocks led by Ashlynn Axtell's eight-block effort (seven assists, one solo)

. Second-year setter Josie Hensley also made her presence felt, securing her second double-double of the season with 19 assists and 11 digs

. After allowing Southern Miss to hit .303 in the opening set, the Trojan defense locked in, keeping the Golden Eagles below .200 hitting efficiency the rest of the match.

Southern Miss (11-4, 2-2 SBC) was led by Sadie McAda, who recorded a double-double with a team-best 14 kills and 13 digs

. After claiming the opening frame, the Golden Eagles dropped three straight sets, marking their first loss of the season after winning set one

.

Set 1 — Troy 23, Southern Miss 25
Despite registering more kills than the Golden Eagles, the Trojans fell just short in the opening frame

. Southern Miss grabbed an early lead and used a 4-0 run to keep Troy at bay

. The Trojans answered behind three consecutive service aces from Brooke Forkum but could not complete the comeback and dropped the set.

Set 2 — Troy 25, Southern Miss 23
Troy jumped out to a quick 6-1 lead in the second set to force an early Southern Miss timeout

. The Trojans maintained control into the media break, holding a comfortable 15-8 advantage

. Just as they did on Friday, the Golden Eagles refused to go away quietly, battling back to pull within a single point at 24-23

. However, Troy's defense came up big at set point, as Axtell and Forkum teamed up for a block to seal the 25-23 victory.

Set 3 — Troy 25, Southern Miss 23
Southern Miss flipped the script to start the third set, taking an early 5-1 lead. Troy chipped away to pull within a point heading into the media break before claiming its first lead of the frame at 20-19. Isa Ruether provided the clincher with her fourth kill of the set, securing the win and putting the Trojans ahead 2-1 in the match.

Set 4 — Troy 25, Southern Miss 20
A back-and-forth fourth set saw seven ties and four lead changes early on

. Down 10-9, Troy rattled off five unanswered points to take control into the media break before pushing the lead to 20-13

. Southern Miss mounted one last push, but the Trojans held firm to slam the door and finish off the 3-1 victory and weekend sweep

.

Quotable — Head Coach Josh Lauer
"Great performance today, a complete team effort against a tough, very-well coached Southern Miss team," Lauer said. "We will enjoy this one and look forward to being back home in Trojan Arena next weekend. Go Trojans!"

Notables

Ashlynn Axtell matched her career-high in attacks (27) and block assists (7), both of which she set against the Golden Eagles in Friday's match.
Brooke Forkum set a new career-high in service aces with three which came in consecutive attempts.
Josie Hensley recorded her second, and the team's fourth double-double of the season with 19 assists and a career-best 11 digs.
The Trojans extend their win streak over the Golden Eagles to nine consecutive matches.
Tonight marked the first match the Trojans have won this season after dropping the first set.

Up Next
Troy volleyball returns to the confines of the Trojan Arena for a weekend series against ULM. The first match begins on Friday, Oct. 9 at 6 p.m. with the second match starting at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 10. Both matches will be streamed exclusively on ESPN+.