STATESBORO – Paige Powers posted 20 kills and 18 digs to lead Georgia Southern to two wins in the GATA Challenge Friday in Hanner Fieldhouse. The Eagles topped Alabama State 3-1 (20-25, 25-15, 25-16, 25-10) in their morning match and capped the day with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-20, 25-10) win over Mercer. 

Eagles of the Match vs. Mercer
Powers tallied a team-high 11 kills and added nine digs and two blocks, and Hannah McGlockton finished with nine kills and a pair of blocks. Ashlyn Lovett collected a team-best 12 digs, and Mya Wilson chipped in eight kills and a block.

Key Moments vs. Mercer
Trailing 16-13 in the first set, the Eagles (6-3) scored five in a row, with four coming behind the serve of Maddie Bryant, to open an 18-16 lead. Mercer (3-7) responded by scoring four of the next five to retake the advantage at 20-19, but it was all Georgia Southern from there. After a Bear hitting error tied the score, Baylor Bumford put down two kills, McGlockton added a kill and Lovett served up an ace for five straight points and a 1-0 lead in the match.

Stat of the Match vs. Mercer
The Eagles outdug the Bears 47-36 and held Mercer to a season-low .011 hitting percentage. 

Eagles of the Match vs. Alabama State
Bumford finished with 12 kills and eight blocks and hit .579, and Chamblee Russell tallied a team-high 13 kills and two blocks while hitting .379. Powers collected nine kills and 10 digs while hitting .471.

Key Moments vs. Alabama State
After dropping the first set 25-20, Georgia Southern never trailed the rest of the way. The Eagles started the second set with a 5-2 run, opened the third set with a 10-2 spurt and led the fourth 12-2.

Stat of the Match vs. Alabama State
The Eagles hit .331 as a team, their second-highest hitting percentage of the season, and held the Lady Hornets (1-11) to an .098 mark.

Quotables from Coach Chad Willis
On Mercer
"Great team effort tonight. Proud of our group; I thought we came out with a ton of energy and an attacking mindset. Defensive intensity set a tone early for what we were able to do offensively. It was great to watch this team really get after it and compete the way we did tonight, and we're going to need to continue to carry that over into tomorrow to finish the weekend on a high."

On Alabama State
"We were a little slow out of the gate this morning, but I'm proud of how our group responded after getting down early. We felt as the match went on, we steadily improved and elevated our play on both sides of the ball, starting with first contact. There were definitely some positive building blocks that will continue to help us grow and improve throughout the weekend."

Next up
Georgia Southern caps its non-conference schedule by playing host to USC Upstate Saturday at 12:30 p.m. in Hanner Fieldhouse.