Wesley reaches 1,500 career kills in sweep against Georgia State

Friday, October 27

Atlanta, Ga. / GSU Sports Arena

5 p.m. CT / 6 p.m. ET

Southern Miss

9-13,4-7Sun Belt

Georgia State

5-17,2-9Sun Belt

Southern Miss.

Georgia St.

Wesley reaches 1,500 career kills in sweep against Georgia State

10/27/2023 8:19:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score

ATLANTA, Ga.-Junior Mia Wesley eclipsed 1,500 career kills Friday night against Georgia State (5-17, 2-9 Sun Belt), leading Southern Miss (9-13, 4-7 Sun Belt) to a road sweep over the Panthers in GSU Sports Arena.

With her fourth kill of the match, the Orem, Utah native became just the fourth Golden Eagle in program history to reach the prolific mark. Wesley was instrumental in the team's victory, pacing both teams with nine kills and also adding ten digs.

Wesley now stands at 1,505 career kills, and has amassed 1,288 kills in three seasons in the Black & Gold.

As a team, Southern Miss enjoyed a .262 hitting performance while limiting Georgia State to a .020 clip and only 23 kills on 102 attempts. The Golden Eagles only trailed once in the game-early in the second set.

Wesley earned six of her kills in the first set, helping the Golden Eagles jump off to a fast start against the Panthers. Southern Miss opened the game on a six-point run, and extended the lead later in the set on another 6-0 run on the way to a 25-14 set victory.

Junior Cara Atkinson followed Wesley with three kills in the set, and was one of three Golden Eagles who connected on all of their attempts in the period. Freshman Sadie McAda and junior Reagan Leinen each recorded two kills on two attempts.

The Panthers were the ones to jump ahead first in the second set on a 3-0 run, but the Golden Eagles quickly found their footing with a 5-0 run of their own to reclaim the lead. Junior Ari Barksdale found rhythm in the period, connecting for three kills on another team run, leading to a Georgia State timeout. Barksdale led Southern Miss in the set with a perfect five kills on five attempts on the way to a 25-16 victory.

Southern Miss capitalized on 11 Georgia State errors in the third set, while Leinen led the attack with four kills for a deciding 25-19 victory in the third set.

Leinen followed Wesley with eight kills on a season-high .727 hitting percentage in the match. Atkinson tallied seven kills and four digs. Starting at setter near her hometown of Alpharetta, Georgia, freshman Franky Panunzio directed the offense with 28 assists and 11 digs for her third career double-double.

Defensively, libero Megan Harris recorded 14 digs in three sets, leading both teams. Harris has registered double-digit digs in 21 of 22 games this season.

With the win, Southern Miss earned its eighth sweep of the season and third in conference play.

Up Next

Southern Miss looks to continue its success with another matchup against the Panthers tomorrow at noon CT in GSU Sports Arena.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.