HISTORIC SPIKE FOR VOLLEYBALL
Eagles Close Out an Unprecedented Season
To call the Eagles’ volleyball season historic is an understatement. It was a season of unprecedented firsts and a foundation for seasons to come.
Their remarkable run ended on Thursday, Dec. 7, during Round 3 of the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) against the University of South Florida, hosted in Hanner Fieldhouse for the first time and attended by more than 1,000 Eagles fans.
The match saw Georgia Southern briefly leading 21-19, only for South Florida to make a comeback. The Bulls continued their dominance in the second set with a 9-0 run and an impressive .514 hitting percentage, winning 25-12. The third set was a nail-biter, with the Eagles tying at 24 before the Bulls clinched the next two points, resulting in a sweep.
While the loss was disappointing, Head Coach Chad Willis beamed with pride at his team’s performance.
“I’m so proud of this team. It was an unbelievable year,” he said. “I’m sad because we don’t get to wake up tomorrow and come back and do it again. I think that’s just a testament to this group and who they are and how they come in every single day. They do what we ask and then some. I’m really proud of them.”
It was the Eagles’ first-ever appearance in the NIVC, and the first post-season win in program history. Their historic run to the Great Eight round began with victories over Winthrop and East Carolina in Greenville, North Carolina. They finished the season with a record of 23-9 overall and 10-6 in the Sun Belt — their first 20-win season since 2013, just before they entered the conference.
Coach Willis and his staff are now looking forward to building on this year’s momentum in the upcoming spring season and beyond. And with their young standouts, they’ll have a firm foundation.
Key players on the Eagles leaderboard will return next year. Freshman and First-Team All-Sun-Belt outside hitter Reagan Barth, sophomore setter Kirsten Barrett, sophomore middle blocker Ailie Hair, junior right side Jordan Christy, junior defensive specialist Ashlynn Lovett, who broke the program record for digs in a single game against Winthrop, and junior outside hitter Jillian Gray will play key roles for Georgia Southern next year.
The Eagles will lose middle blocker and 5th-year senior Ally Barnhart, setter Callaway Cason, defensive specialists Ainsley Clifford and Rebekah Farthing, and outside hitter Chamblee Russell.
“I’m so proud of this team. It was
-Eagles Volleyball Head Coach Chad Willis
an unbelievable year.”