Women's Volleyball . October 17, 2025

Gamecocks Drop Home Match to Mississippi State

Game #1

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina volleyball team (7-10, 1-6 SEC) fell 3-0 to Mississippi State (14-3, 4-3 SEC) on Friday night in the Carolina Volleyball Center. The Gamecocks struggled offensively, recording their lowest hitting percentage of the season at .087, and for just the second time this year, no player reached double-digit kills.

1st SET: South Carolina started off strong, earning early service aces from Sarah Jordan and Victoria Hill to gain momentum. The Gamecocks held on to a lead before Mississippi State tied the score at 8-8, setting the tone for a tightly contested set. Midway through, both teams traded points until the Bulldogs began to pull away to a 19-14 advantage. South Carolina responded with a 5-0 scoring run, fueled by kills from Nia Hall and Emily Beeker, to even the score at 20-20. Despite the late push, Mississippi State closed out the set 25-22.

2nd SET: The Gamecocks found themselves playing from behind early and were unable to capture the lead at any point in the set. Mississippi State dominated at the net, limiting South Carolina to a .158 hitting percentage while earning a .517 hitting percentage of their own. The Gamecocks called a timeout trailing 22-14 in an attempt to shift momentum, but despite late kills from Ava Leahy and Laiya Ebo, the Bulldogs maintained control and closed out the set 25-16 to extend their match lead to 2-0.

3rd SET: South Carolina came out with energy, opening the set with a kill from Alayna Johnson that sparked a 7-4 lead that included an ace from Leahy and a kill from Beeker to force a Mississippi State timeout. The Bulldogs quickly responded, evening the score at 9-9 and eventually pulling ahead to 14-10 midway through the set. Continued strong play at the net extended the Bulldogs’ advantage to 19-14, prompting a South Carolina timeout. Despite a late kill from Hall, unforced errors proved costly as the Gamecocks were unable to close the gap, falling 25-17 and dropping the match in straight sets.

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