FOLEY, Ala – Georgia Southern tallied a school record and Sun Belt Tournament 5-set match record 27 blocks, and the Eagles rallied from a 13-10 deficit in the fifth set to post a 3-2 (29-27, 25-27, 25-22, 20-25, 16-14) victory over Troy in Sun Belt Volleyball Championship pool play Wednesday night in the Foley Sports Complex. 

Lauren Hager posted a school record 19 blocks in the match, Baylor Bumford added 11, Chamblee Russell collected 10 and Mya Wilson notched seven as the Eagles (5-9) held the Trojans (10-7) to .055 hitting.

The Eagles are the lowest seed in Pool B, and the Trojans are the highest. Georgia Southern plays UTA, the third seed from the West Division, in its final match of pool play tomorrow at 8:30 p.m. ET. The winners of the four pools advance to Saturday's semifinal round. 

Eagles of the Match
Bumford led the Eagle offense with 13 kills, Wilson finished with 12 and Hager chipped in six. Balls that made it past the net still had a tough time finding the sport court as Rebekah Farthing tallied 28 digs, while Madison Brown and Russell each posted 10. Farthing added three aces, while Russell and Landon Jones each finished with two.

Key Moments 
Hager pushed down a kill and combined with Bumford for a block as the Eagles rallied from a 13-10 deficit in the fifth set. Georgia Southern fought off one match point to tie the score 14-14 before Hager fittingly ended the match with a pair of blocks. Russell was with Hager on the first one for match point, and Bumford combined with Hager on the block to end the match.

Georgia Southern rallied from a 16-11 deficit in the first set as Russell was in on three blocks and tallied a kill in a 10-4 Eagle run. GS fought off three set points before Hager and Russell combined for a block, and Hager recorded a solo block to give the Eagles the 29-27 win.

Trailing 22-21 in the third set, Georgia Southern won the final four points of the frame to open a 2-1 lead in the match. Bumford and Hager put down consecutive kills, and the duo combined for a block to ignite the run.

Stat of the Match
The teams combined for 147 digs and 37 blocks in the defensive gem. It was the Eagles' fourth straight match against Troy, and GS has won the last three.

Quotables from head coach Chad Willis
"I'm really proud of our team tonight for the effort and resiliency. Hats off to Troy for a great defensive battle; we struggled to find consistency offensively but clearly made up for it defensively—especially at the net. For the last week, we've been talking a lot about moving forward as a program, and tonight we challenged our team to make a statement. First Sun Belt Conference Tournament win in program history along with a school record and Sun Belt Tournament record 27 blocks. Our group is enjoying the moment. We'll celebrate this one tonight, but also know we've got another big opportunity tomorrow."

Next Up
Tomorrow's match against UTA will be broadcast live on ESPN+. The Eagles have never defeated the Mavericks in nine tries.