BOONE, NC -- Freshmen Aaliyah Mitchell and Jahniya Jackson combined for 24 kills as Georgia State rallied from two sets down to earn a 3-2 victory (17-25, 19-25, 25-17, 25-22, 15-12) a Appalachian State Friday on the road at Holmes Convocation Center.
Georgia State's second-straight five-set win boosted the Panthers' record to 5-11 overall and 2-3 in Sun Belt play.
The Panthers offense was paced by Jackson, who finished with 12 kills on the day while accumulating a hitting percentage of .257, and Mitchell, who also had 12 kills. Defensively, GSU had three players reach double figures in digs, including Livy Kowalkowski's 18, 13 from Erin Wyatt, and 11 more from Maren Palmer. From the front row, Akira Burt contributed five blocks.
Georgia State and App State will play again Saturday at 1 p.m. on ESPN+.
Game Notes
» Georgia State dropped the first two sets of the match before rallying to win the final three.
» Jahniya Jackson and Aaliyah Mitchell each had a team-high 12 kills for Georgia State, while Amanda Albertini added eight kills.
» Georgia State had three players in double figures in digs.
» Akira Burt had three aces and five blocks in the win.
» Georgia State got a match-high 18 digs from Livy Kowalkowski.
» Georgia State attackers were helped by a team-high 18 assists from Maren Palmer.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Panthers fell behind early, dropping a tough first set 25-17. Georgia State trailed by as many as eight points as Appalachian State grabbed the advantage for good at 16-15 in a set that was tied up seven times before the Mountaineers took over in the second half of the stanza.
SET 2 | A 25-19 second-set loss put Georgia State behind 2-0 in the match. The Panthers fell behind on the first point and never took the lead before dropping the set.
SET 3 | After dropping sets one and two, Georgia State fought back to grab set three and make it a 2-1 match. The Panthers scored first and never trailed in the set to secure a 25-17 victory. Georgia State opened up as much as an eight point lead at 24-16 before closing out the set.
SET 4 | Georgia State continued their comeback, winning the fourth set 25-23 to bring the match level at two sets apiece. The Panthers scored first and never trailed in the set to secure the victory. Georgia State opened up as much as a five point lead at 5-0 before closing out the stanza. Georgia State also supplemented their offense with four aces in the set.
SET 5 | Georgia State fell behind 2-0, but mounted a furious rally to win the next three sets, culminating in a 15-12 fifth-set victory, and take the match 3-2. The Panthers took control of the set-five lead at 4-3 and held it the rest of the way. Georgia State led by as many as five points at 12-7 before closing out the set.
