A Winning Season | Georgia Southern Magazine

Eagles Quarterfinals Comeback Falls Short in Sun Belt Volleyball Tournament

In just their fourth appearance in the Sun Belt Tournament since joining the conference in 2014, Georgia Southern fell just short of a comeback, losing to the University of Texas-Arlington, 3-2.

The quarterfinal game, held on Nov. 19 in Foley, Alabama, was a rematch against UTA, who ended the Eagles tournament run in 2020, 3-1. In this game, however, Georgia Southern dug in for a final set that saw seven ties and six lead changes before UTA sealed the win.

“Just a heck of an effort today,” said Head Coach Chad Willis. “I know it’s not the result we wanted, but I’m so incredibly proud of this group—they battled and stayed resilient, did everything we asked them to do and left it on the floor. You can’t learn from moments unless you’re in them, so we’ll use this experience as another step forward as we continue to pursue excellence and build for championships.”

Senior Hannah McGlockton put down two kills as the Eagles (17-11) scored four straight points to open a 7-4 cushion in the fifth set. UTA came roaring back and scored the next five points to take the lead, 9-7, but Georgia Southern, sparked by a pair of kills by senior Maddie Bryant, answered by scoring four of the next five to go back in front 12-10. After a UTA kill cut the margin to one point, the Eagles had chances to add to the lead, but consecutive attack attempts sailed just wide. UTA’s Brianna Ford took over from there, putting down two kills for the final two points of the match.

Georgia Southern setter Madison Brown matched her career-high with 54 assists in her final contest and passed the 3,000 career assist mark, finishing with 3,005, which ranks fifth all-time at Georgia Southern.

Senior Baylor Bumford matched her career high with 19 kills to go along with seven blocks, and Bryant finished with 14 kills and two blocks. McGlockton chipped in 13 kills, and freshman Ashlyn Lovett registered 19 digs. Brown also recorded 11 digs, five blocks, four kills and two aces.

This year marks the first winning season for Georgia Southern since entering the Sun Belt Conference. They finished with a 17-11 record overall and 9-7 record in conference play.

All-Conference Eagles

Two Eagles also made all-conference lists this year. Bumford was named first-team All-Sun Belt, and Lovett was named the conference’s Freshman of the Year.

Bumford ranks second in the Sun Belt in hitting percentage (.368) and posted a mark of .372 in conference matches, which also ranked second. She averaged 2.44 kills and 0.78 blocks in league matches and reached double figures in kills in nine contests this season, including a career-high 19 vs. Georgia State Oct. 9. Her 13 solo blocks in conference play were tied for the sixth most in the Sun Belt, and she has posted four-plus blocks in 15 contests this season. Bumford is the first Eagle to earn first-team All-Sun Belt honors since Lauren Reichard in 2017.

Lovett became the first player in school history to be named the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year. The two-time Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week selection ranked fourth in the league in digs – first among freshmen – in conference matches with 4.72 per set. Lovett totaled double-figure digs in 15 of 16 league contests and 20 matches overall and has posted 20-plus digs seven times this season. Lovett had just seven reception errors in 254 attempts in conference play and also averaged 0.64 and 0.20 aces per set.