No. 12 Gamecocks Pick Up Two Wins on Senior Day

April 14, 2017

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1: Katie Smith/Adrianna Culbert (SC) def. Tanna Aljoe/Nicole Lott (UNCW) 21-14, 21-16

2: Katie Zimmerman/Macie Tendrich (SC) def. Emily Corrigan/Katie McCullough (UNCW) 21-17, 21-19

3: Shannon Williams/Ali Denney (SC) def. Sarah Kelly/Sydney Alvis (UNCW) 25-23, 21-18

4: Jade Vitt/Franky Harrison (SC) def. Bella Borgiotti/Maddy Kline (UNCW) 21-17, 21-13

5: Carly Schnieder/Julia Mannisto (SC) def. Halle Hunt/Raquel Rooney (UNCW) 21-17, 21-15

Ex: Courtney Mullinax/Kati Smith (UNCW) def. Delaney Wood/Helen Recaborde (SC) 21-16, 21-12

Order of Finish: 5,4,1,2,3

1: Tea Juric/Kaylie McHugh (TULANE) def. Adrianna Culbert/Katie Smith (SC) 21-17, 21-17

2: Shannon Williams/Ali Denney (SC) def. Lan Nguyen/Madeline Mertz (TULANE) 21-13, 24-26, 15-12

3: Katie Zimmerman/Macie Tendrich (SC) def. Briana Correa/Hannah Holmes (TULANE) 21-14, 21-13

4: Julia Mannisto/Carly Schnieder (SC) def. Annie Shurtz/Tarin Mergener (TULANE) 21-16, 21-12

5: Jade Vitt/Franky Harrison (SC) def. Sarah Strasner/Anna Chin (TULANE) 21-11, 21-18

Order of Finish: 5,4,1,3,2

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The South Carolina beach volleyball program was able to celebrate two wins as well as its seven seniors Friday, kicking off the Palmetto Invitational at Wheeler Beach. The Gamecocks (19-7, 10-5 CCSA) beat UNC Wilmington (12-8) 5-0, and Tulane (18-11) 4-1 on Senior Night.

Less than two weeks removed from the first meeting this season with the Seahawks, the Gamecocks were able to find similar success and picked up sweeps across all five matches. Franky Harrison and Jade Vitt flipped with Julia Mannisto and Carly Schnieder in the lineup, and both pairs picked up wins in the opening wave of action. Harrison and Vitt won 21-17, 21-13 at the fours, while Mannisto and Schnieder won 21-17, 21-15 in the five spot.

Katie Smith and Adrianna Culbert clinched the dual with a 21-14, 21-16 win in the top flight for a 3-0 lead in the team score. Katie Zimmerman and Macie Tendrich moved up to win a 21-17, 21-19 match out of the second position, and Ali Denney and Shannon Williams closed out the match with a 25-23, 21-18 win in the threes.

Before the team’s match against Tulane, seven graduating student-athletes were recognized for South Carolina. In the group were Adrianna Culbert, Katie Zimmerman, Abby Feruck, and the program’s first-ever freshman class: Erin Neuenfeldt, Helen Recaborde, Jordan Wilson-Talmadge and Jade Vitt.

Against the Green Wave, the fours and fives were able to pick up convincing wins to start the team out with a 2-0 lead. Both the Harrison/Vitt and Mannisto/Schnieder pairs held their opponents to less than 30 combined points in their respective sweeps.

Tulane was able to cut the lead in half after sweeping the number one pair, but Zimmerman and Tendrich were able to clinch the win with a 21-14, 21-13 showing in the threes. Ali Denney and Shannon Williams closed the night with a thrilling 21-13, 24-26, 15-12 win in the number two flight to finish off the 4-1 win.

QUOTABLE: HEAD COACH Moritz Moritz

On the team’s focus heading into senior night
“The neat thing about this group is that they are really emotional in the sense of how connected they are and how passionate they are about what we’re creating and what we’ve worked for this entire season. There’s a certain sense of maturity they have going into our approach for each match and making sure that we continue to work at the level that we need to improve and get better and compete at the highest level.”

Up Next

The team has one more day of duals left in the regular season, wrapping up the Palmetto Invitational tomorrow at 1 and 5 p.m. The Gamecocks host Jacksonville State at 1, and close out the 2017 regular season with a 5 p.m. match against College of Charleston.