HUNTSVILLE, ALA. — The Jackson State Tigers volleyball program advanced to the SWAC Tournament semifinal match with a sweep over the Tigers of Texas Southern on Friday morning. With the win, Jackson State improves to 16-12 overall. 

The opening set of the match was a battle, as the teams pushed 11 tie scores and five lead changes. Jackson State overcame a five-point deficit by battling back from a 7-1 TSU scoring run with a kill by Jylen Whitten, and then were able to tie the match back up at 15-points all. Multiple mistakes by Texas Southern gave JSU a tie score near set-point. Two kills by Alexis Williams and Marina Brito, followed by a TSU attack error, gave the Tigers the opening set victory with a final score of 25-23.

The remaining two sets of the match were controlled by JSU, featuring two lead changes in the second set with a final score of 25-18, and a final score of 25-12 in the final set of the match in which Jackson State led the entire time.

The offense posted a hitting percentage of .211 on 40 total kills, and 31 assists recorded by junior setter and All-SWAC First Team selection Damassy Thompson. Thompson also recorded 12 digs, marking her first double-double of the postseason.

Marina Brito led the team in scoring and kills with 13 points scored on 12 kills, and one block solo. Alexis Williams added 11 kills and 12 points scored. 

Defensively, four Tigers finished the match in double-figures for digs. Trinity Bryant led with 13, while Alana Washington and Jylen Whitten also added 10 digs.

The semifinal match will take place on Saturday at 2 p.m. against the winner of the second quarterfinal match featuring Alabama State and Grambling State, which is being played on Friday at 1:30 p.m. The matches will be live-streamed on the SWAC Digital Network until the Championship match, which will be available on ESPN+.

You can follow the squad on Twitter (@GoJSUTigersVB), Instagram (@gojsutigersvb), and Facebook (Jackson State Volleyball) for all things JSU volleyball.