FOLEY, ALA. – Sun Belt Freshman of the Year Jalyn Stout recorded her 14th triple-double to lead the Coastal Carolina women's volleyball team to a 3-1 (25-21, 19-25, 30-28, 25-19) win over the James Madison Dukes in the 2023 Sun Belt Conference Volleyball Championship final. With the win, the Chants improve to 22-9 on the year, while the Dukes fall to 21-9 overall.
 
Coastal was led by the duo of Stout (22 kills, 28 assists, 16 digs) and Jasmine Rivest (21 kills, 16 digs) with Agata Lesiak (12 kills) and Lauren Malone (10 kills) adding double-digit kills. Cagla Bengi totaled a match-high 33 assists. 
 
Defensively, Coastal tallied seven blocks in the match as Valentina Varani finished with a team-high four blocks, while Rivest and Dilara Unal totaled three blocks on the front line. Freshman libero Sydney Lewis tallied a match-high 29 digs.
 
James Madison was led by Mitte Veldman with a match-high 23 kills and Bre Reid with 13 kills with Elizabeth Helmich and Sophie Davis adding eight and six kills, respectively. Rebecca Watkins totaled a team-high 25 assists. Davis finished with a match-high six blocks at the net.
 
The opening set saw the Dukes take a 4-2 advantage only for Coastal Carolina to even the set at 6-6 with a 4-2 run, highlighted by a pair of kills by Rivest. JMU responded with a second 4-2 spurt to take a 10-8 lead before the Chanticleers used a 7-1 burst that included three spikes by Rivest to take a 15-11 lead.
 
However, the Dukes cut the margin to 19-18 with a 7-4 surge just to see CCU increase its lead to 21-18 with two quick points. James Madison evened the set at 21-21 with a 3-0 run before the Chants claimed the first set at 25-21 with a 4-0 burst, sparked by a Malone kill and topped off by a Unal spike.
 
In the second set, three straight kills by Rivest pushed CCU to a 4-1 lead but JMU answered with a 12-4 run to take a 13-8 lead. The two teams traded the next nine rallies with the Dukes maintaining a 17- 12 advantage only to see the Chants respond with a 3-0 burst to trail 18-15 that included a pair of kills by Stout. However, James Madison outscored Coastal Carolina 7-4 to even the match at 1-1 with the 25-19 second set victory.
 
The third set saw the two squads remain deadlocked at 5-5after the first 10 rallies before the Dukes surged to the lead at 10-7 with a 5-2 burst. Coastal answered with a 6-3 run to even the set at 13-13 that included spikes by Varani, Stout, and Bengi. After trading the next six rallies the score was even at 16-16 before JMU fired off a 6-2 spurt to take a 22-18 advantage.
 
The Chanticleers responded with a 5-0 run to lead 23-22 that included a pair of kills by Stout that forced the Dukes to call both of their timeouts. Coastal had the first chance to take a 2-1 match lead at 24-23 only to see JMU battle back to have three opportunities to win the set that was shut down by Coastal with kills by Stout, Malone, and Lesiak. With the score even at 28-28, Coastal knocked down the next two points on spikes by Lesiak and Rivest to take a 2-1 match lead with the 30-28 third set win.
 
In the fourth and final set, Coastal raced out to a 12-4 lead that included four kills by Rivest only to see the Dukes answered with a 10-4 run to trail 16-14. The Chanticleers responded with a 5-1 burst to increase their lead to 21-15 before the two teams traded the final eight points for CCU to win the match 3-1 with the 25-19 fourth set victory.
 
Coastal Carolina awaits the 2023 NCAA Championship tournament selection show to find out where they will play. This year's tournament selections are scheduled for 6 p.m. ET Sunday, Nov. 26 on ESPNU. 
 
2023 Sun Belt Volleyball All-Tournament Team
Most Outstanding Performer – Jalyn Stout, Coastal Carolina
Agata Lesiak, Coastal Carolina
Jasmine Rivest, Coastal Carolina
Sophie Davis, James Madison
Jaydyn Clemmer, James Madison
Hannah Maddux, South Alabama
Samantha Wunsch, Texas State
 
For complete coverage of CCU women's volleyball, follow the Chants on social media @CoastalVball (Twitter), facebook.com/CCUChanticleers (Facebook), @GoCCUSports (Instagram), or visit the official home of Coastal Carolina Athletics at www.GoCCUsports.com.