BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The University of Georgia women’s volleyball team earned a road sweep of Texas A&M Thursday evening at Reed Arena (25-21, 25-20, 25-17).

The victory was Georgia’s first of Southeastern Conference play in 2021.

Sophomore Phoebe Awoleye tipped the double-digit kill mark for the first time in SEC play this season, finishing with 10 to lead the Bulldogs. She also hit .571 on the evening.

Defensively, freshman libero Bailey Cox recorded a season-best 14 digs to lead the squad. Junior Kacie Evans also tallied 12 digs to complement her eight kills.

At the service line, Georgia (5-10, 1-3) aced the Aggies six times while recording no reception errors. It is the first time this season the Bulldogs’ opponent did not record an ace. Senior Kayla Rivera and freshman Clara Brower each had a pair of aces.

Georgia opened the match going ahead 4-1 before Texas A&M (10-5, 3-2) stormed back to tie it up. A back-and-forth battle ensued until three-straight from the Bulldogs opened a 17-14 lead. The Bulldogs held on to take the opening set from the Aggies, 25-21.

Down 10-9 in set two, Georgia used a 6-1 run to open a 15-11 advantage in the set. After the Aggies sided out, the Bulldogs rattled off four-straight to build the lead to 20-13. Georgia was able to keep the Aggies at bay and take the second frame 25-20 and a 2-0 lead in the match.

The momentum of the second set carried the Bulldogs to a 6-1 lead to open the third and force an early Aggie break. Georgia kept its foot on the gas, leading by as much as six in the frame. With Georgia ahead 20-14, Texas A&M won three-straight, prompting a Bulldog timeout. After the break, the Bulldogs went on a 5-0 run to end the match and complete the sweep, 25-17.

The Bulldogs and Aggies will square off again Friday evening at Reed Arena. The 8 p.m., ET, match will air on SEC Network.

Head coach Tom Black

On Thursday’s match… “I think it was one of our steadiest matches competitively. I thought we were able to keep a good level of intensity point-by-point which is most important. We had a lot of people play well as a result and I think I was most happy about that; just how steady we were competitively.”

On Phoebe Awoleye’s performance…  “Phoebe is really high. So, when we connect with her, it’s hard to stop her. They were fronting her and trying to hop on her, but I thought she was able to get some good swings over the block. That’s just a connection we have to keep building.”

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