Dukes Comeback Bid Falls Short Against South Alabama

Friday, November 1

Harrisonburg, Va.

5 p.m.

James Madison University

10-11,5-6Sun Belt

South Alabama

13-8,9-2Sun Belt

South Alabama

James Madison

11/1/2024 8:24:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

HARRISONBURG, Va. – James Madison climbed out of a 2-0 hole but ultimately fell to South Alabama in five sets (23-25, 26-28, 25-13, 25-18, 9-15) on Friday evening in Sun Belt Conference volleyball inside the Convocation Center.

South Alabama won its ninth straight match and improved to 13-8 and 9-2 in conference action, while the Dukes fell to 10-11 overall and 5-6 in league play.

Brenya Reid led JMU (10-11, 5-6 SBC) with 28 kills, tying her career high, which came against Coastal Carolina on Oct. 19. Junior Julia McNeley got the start at libero and collected a career-best 23 digs, and sophomore setter Rebecca Watkins had a season-high 43 assists while also tying her season-high in kills (6).

Four players for South Alabama finished with double-digit kills, led by Abryanna Cannon's 18-kill effort. Sarah Gooch (13), Maradith O'Gorman (11), and Dalayla Blackwell (11) also eclipsed double-digit kills, while setter Anna Loberg finished with 43 assists.

How It Happened
First Set: South Alabama 25-23

South Alabama held a slim 15-14 edge at the first media timeout, as either team failed to gain a foothold.
With the score tied 16-16, the Jaguars reeled off four straight to take a 20-16 lead.
The Dukes answered back to tie the score at 22-22, but USA used a 3-1 run to take the first set.

Second Set: South Alabama 28-26

Each team battled back and forth early, with South Alabama holding a 15-14 lead at the media timeout.
Veldman recorded a solo block to tie the score at 16-16, and the dukes swung ahead 20-17 on a service ace from Smith.
South Alabama tied the score at 21-21 on a block and eventually gained a 24-23 advantage on a Cannon kill.
The Dukes held off three USA set points but ultimately fell behind 2-0 in the match with their second two-point loss.

Third Set: James Madison 25-13

A termination from Gooch trimmed JMU's lead to 9-8, but it was all Dukes from there.
Consecutive kills from Smith ballooned the Dukes' lead to 20-13, prompting a Jaguars timeout.
JMU closed out the set and stayed alive, finished off with a kill from Veldman.

Fourth Set: James Madison 25-18

The Dukes kept their momentum from the third, jumping ahead 8-3 on a kill from Reid.
Smith extended JMU's lead to eight (16-8) on another kill, and the Dukes continued to pull away.
Rebecca Watkins picked up a dump-set to give JMU set point, and a Savanah Cockrill kill from the middle evened the match at 2-2.

Fifth Set: South Alabama 15-9

The Dukes gained an early 4-1 lead as South Alabama called a timeout.
The Jaguars immediately regained their footing, using a 7-2 run to jump ahead 8-6 as JMU called a timeout.
A Veldman kill trimmed USA's lead to 10-8, but the Jaguars slammed the door shut on the Dukes with a 5-1 run to take the match.

Match Notes

Miëtte Veldman's 11 kills are the most for the redshirt senior since she had 19 versus UC San Diego on Sept. 12.
McNeley's career-high 23 digs surpassed her previous best of 22, which she did versus Coastal Carolina on Oct. 19.
Reid finished with double-digit kills for the 10th consecutive match, a stretch that also includes six matches with 20 or more.
JMU finished with 70 kills, the most since recording 74 against Coastal Carolina on Nov. 19, 2023.
The Dukes also recorded 11 service aces, tied for the most in a match this season (Coastal Carolina, 10/18).

Up Next
JMU and South Alabama return to the court tomorrow at Noon to finish their two-match set. The game will broadcast on ESPN+ with David Hulvey.