SAN MARCOS, Texas – The Texas State volleyball team collected a 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-19) victory over Georgia Southern Friday night inside Strahan Coliseum.
 
The Bobcats (16-7, 7-1 SBC) picked up their eighth-consecutive triumph overall and have now shutout each of their last seven Sun Belt Conference opponents. The last time the maroon and gold swept at least seven-consecutive league foes came back in 2000, when the school record of nine was set.
 
Leading the way for TXST was junior Madison Daigle, who had a match-high 10 kills with no errors on 20 swings for a .500 attack percentage. Sophomore Amy Pflughaupt tallied nine kills and eight digs, while classmate Micah Dinwiddie added 22 digs for the second match in a row. Senior Erin Hoppe (24) and true freshman Brooke Johnson (13) distributed 37 assists.
 
Texas State secured the opening set by a 25-19 margin. The Bobcats went ahead 6-5 and never trailed again, but the visitors fought to the very end. The lead swelled to as much as six at 17-11, but GS climbed back to within two at 17-15. TXST used a well-placed timeout to squash the comeback as the maroon and gold closed on a 10-4 run.
 
The second set was nip-and-tuck throughout, but it was TXST who found the final surge to claim the period 25-20. Georgia Southern took its largest lead of the match at 14-11, but Texas State quickly used a 3-0 run to pull level. The maroon and gold battled into a 19-15 advantage and was able to hang on for the narrow five-point triumph.
 
The final period was all Bobcats, as the home side went on top 14-7 before cruising to the finish line at 25-19.
 
TXST improved to 5-0 all-time against the Eagles.
 
Lauren Reichard, Cathrine Murray and Carly Turner led GS with six kills each. Murray added 10 digs in the losing effort. Landon Jones (12) and April Luther (10) combined for 22 assists, and Joscelin Morrow contributed 10 digs of her own.
 
TXST led in kills (44-27), attack percentage (.236-.115), assists (42-26), aces (8-3), and digs (56-40). The eight aces tied the season high for Texas State. Both teams finished with seven blocks.
 
The Bobcats will remain home for a 6:30 p.m. match Oct. 21 against Georgia State. The Panthers dropped a 3-1 decision Friday night to UTA in Arlington, Texas.
 
TEXAS STATE COACH KAREN CHISUM
Opening Statement…
"I was disappointed with how we played offensively, especially in the first two games. Brooke Johnson and Marissa Kindred made a big difference tonight off the bench. We had a lot more hitting errors than we've been having lately, but I'm going to take the win. Georgia Southern played much better tonight than what we had seen on film. They really raised their level of play against us. We needed a win like this one to keep the momentum going into tomorrow's match against Georgia State.
 
On being able to fight off Georgia Southern rallies…
"I'm proud of the team for stepping up tonight, particularly in that third set. Erin Hoppe struggled a little bit distributing the ball, but she did a great job offensively. Marissa Kindred really gave us a lift off the bench. I told the team after the match that this is exactly why you have 16 people. When one of the six on the court isn't playing at their best, then we have quality people on our bench who can step in and do the job. We're going to need everybody to go out there and contribute when called upon if we have any chance of winning any sort of championship this season."
 
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