Oct. 17, 2012

COLUMBIA, S.C. –

Gamecocks’ Weekend Schedule
Fri., Oct. 19 at Mississippi State | 8 p.m. EDT | Live Stats | Live Video | @GamecockVolley
Sun., Oct. 21 at Mississippi | 2 p.m. EDT | | Live Video (via ESPN3) | @GamecockVolley
Television Networks for Sunday at Ole Miss: Charter/Comcast Sports Southeast (check local listings to ensure availability and time)

2012 SC VB Notes (10/17)

2012 SC VB Stats (as of 10/16)

South Carolina Team Notes

• Four teams went undefeated in the opening weekend of SEC play: Florida, Missouri, Texas A&M and South Carolina.
• Out of the six hitters who have played in half the sets and averaged at least one kill per set, three hit over .260 (Thévenin, Howley and Dozier).
• Only two non-conference opponents hit over .200 against South Carolina: East Tennessee State (.207) and UAB (.285). All nine SEC foes have topped that mark.
• The Gamecocks are undefeated when they win the blocking battle (7-0). More record breakdowns are found on page 6.
• At No. 21 Tennessee (9/23), the Gamecocks did not allow an ace, successfully passing all 87 serves they received.
• The last time South Carolina did not allow an ace came in Scott Swanson’s first game as head coach, against Montana on Aug. 26, 2011.

All About the Winning Streak

• The 13-0 start for the Gamecocks ranks as the best in the program’s NCAA-era history. The 1983 team began the season 12-0.
• The 13-match winning streak was the second-longest documented skein in program history.
• The longest winning streak came in 1983, as the team posted a 14-match streak from Oct. 15-Nov. 18.
• The loss that ended the longest skein came in the 1983 Metro Conference Tournament final. Florida State won the five-set match to earn the automatic berth to the third NCAA Tournament. The field only had 28 teams at the time.
• That 1983 team also had the best start previously in program history with 12 wins. That was the second-longest documented winning streak for the Gamecocks until this year.
• For the second-consecutive year, South Carolina was the last undefeated team in the Southeastern Conference.

The Difference Between Winning & Losing

• South Carolina hits .314 in matches it wins and .176 in those it loses, a .138 difference.
• The opponents when South Carolina wins hit .175. That jumps to .329 if the Gamecocks lose, a .154 gap.
• Winning Gamecock matches see SC post 2.57 more digs per set than the opposition. When the foes triumph, the Gamecocks are outdug by 2.28 a frame.
• In wins, South Carolina wins the blocking battle by averages of 2.08 to 1.69. In setbacks, the Gamecocks get outblocked 2.56 to 1.40.
• Serve reception has been the same statistically in both wins and losses, with opponents averaging 0.92 aces a set in both results.

Attacking the Record Book

• Taylor Bruns is sixth in assists (2,562), passing Shellie Higgins with her 37 assists at Coastal Carolina, and eighth in assists per set (7.40) in Gamecock history.
• Juliette Thévenin stands 14th in SC history with 957 kills and 13th with 2,517 attacks.
• Just 18 kills separates Thévenin from advancing into 13th in kills, past Diane Denton.
• A total of 17 more attacks move Thévenin past Berna Dwyer for 12th on that list, while 43 attacks moves Thévenin into the top 10 in school history.
• Thévenin ranks 18th on the career points chart (as it would stand had everyone played in the rally-scoring era), needing 11.5 more to surpass Colleen McKenzie.
• She’s fourth on the points-per-set charts with a 4.21 average.
• Thévenin’s now second in kills per set (3.80) and 10th in digs per set (2.80) on the career charts.
• Paige Wheeler’s 869 digs stands 18th on the career dig charts, 17 behind Tammy Correll.
• Paige Wheeler is third on SC’s career charts in digs per set (3.56).

Record-Charting Single-Match Performances

• Sophomore Bethanie Thomas’s three solo blocks vs. ETSU (8/25) tied for second on the program’s five-set match listing.

Historical Records

• South Carolina is 720-542 (.571) all-time in volleyball.

Gamecocks in the SEC Stat Superlatives

• South Carolina hit the third-highest hitting percentage in four-set match (.370 vs. Niagara) and the second-best in a five-setter (.297 vs. ETSU) for an SEC team this fall.
• The team’s .419 hitting percentage against UNC Asheville ranks eighth in the overall SEC match performances.
• In SEC matches only, Juliette Thévenin has the third-most kills in a three-set match this year (18 vs. Georgia and LSU) and the fourth-most in a four-set contest (22 vs. Auburn).
• Thévenin also stands second (20.5 vs. Georgia) and fourth (18.5 at LSU) in points in a sweep this year in an SEC match.

Competition Level Rising

• The three opponents in the 2012 Carolina Clash held better final 2011 RPIs than all but one of SC’s first eight foes.
• Clemson finished at 54, UAB 84 and Winthrop 149 in the last RPI of 2011 (Niagara was 146).
• In the third RPI report from the NCAA (Oct. 15), the Gamecocks ranked 74th.
• South Carolina beat top 100 RPI teams Clemson (72), Georgia (54) and LSU (67).
• Four of the seven losses came against top-50 RPI teams (Auburn 49, Tennessee 18, Florida 12, Texas A&M 28).

Roster Notes

• Eight freshman, including seven true rookies, are a part of the 17-person roster.
• Three players hail from each South Carolina and Texas, the most on the team.
• A pair of student-athletes both hail from California and Maryland.
• Six other states and another country are represented by the seven remaining athletes.
• For the 17th-consecutive season, the Gamecocks have had at least one international player.
• A total of 16 players have appeared on the court so far. Only freshman Kira Speer has not seen any action and is on track for a redshirt year.

South Carolina Overview

• South Carolina returns four starters and its starting libero from the 2011 team.
• That 2011 team, the first coached by Scott Swanson, doubled the win total from the previous year.
• The leading attacker by kills, junior outside hitter Juliette Thévenin, is back.
• The top defender by digs, junior libero Paige Wheeler, returns.
• Setters Taylor Bruns and Lexie Pawlik make up the vast majority of the 97 percent of assists back.
• The Gamecocks lost almost 50 percent of the team blocks from last season.
• The next highest total of “lost” stats are kills, where 32.2 percent departed.
• Last season, the Gamecocks led the SEC in digs per set. Only 12.2 percent of those departed.

Preseason Tournament Accolades

• Cara Howley earned Gamecock Invitational MVP honors.
• Joining Howley on the all-tournament team were Christina Vereb and Paige Wheeler.
• Juliette Thévenin took Patriot Invitational Most Outstanding Player and Best Hitter honors.
• Taylor Bruns was named Best Setter, and Wheeler claimed Best Defender accolades.
• Bruns claimed the MVP award for the Carolina Clash, and joining her on the all-tournament team was Howley and Thévenin.

Gamecocks in TV Matches
Research dug up the fact that the Gamecocks are 13-16 when the big cameras come out, snapping a six-match TV losing streak last November against Alabama. This will be the Gamecocks’ fourth appearance on CSS, going 3-0 in previous games on the channel. Below is the historical listing of South Carolina matches on cable or local broadcast TV stations.

Scouting Mississippi State
The Bulldogs stand at 4-14 on the season and are the only winless team in SEC play with an 0-9 mark. Mississippi State tries to outlast opponents, making 16.89 digs a set during the year. Leading the team in that category is Roxanne McVey with 5.71 per set, but she’s shifted to setter recently after the departure of Paris Perret. Alex Scott stepped into the libero role last weekend and averaged four digs a set against Kentucky and Missouri.

Offensively, Taylor Scott leads the team with 2.95 kills per set, while Lainey Wyman is second with 2.58 kills per set. Scott helps with the passing as well, contributing 2.95 kills per set. Wyman is the Bulldogs’ top blocker, averaging 0.91 blocks a set. Sarah Nielsen and Chanelle Baker both average over two kills a frame.

Series History vs. the Bulldogs
South Carolina owns a 26-10 advantage in the all-time series against Mississippi State, but it’s just a 7-6 mark in contests in Starkville. Last year, the Gamecocks dropped a five-set affair in the Newell-Grissom Building.

Scouting Mississippi
The Rebels look to return to the win column this weekend for the first time since their visit to Columbia three weeks ago, dropping four matches against the top half of the league since that Sept. 30 match. A strong serving team, Mississippi averages 1.22 aces a set, but they allow 1.16 a frame.

Kara Morgan and Allegra Wells provide most of the offense, averaging 3.16 and 2.49 kills per set, respectively. Morgan leads the team with 19 aces and stands fourth on the roster with 2.06 digs per set. Setter Amanda Philpot posts 1.78 kills per set, 9.00 assists a frame and 2.33 digs a set. The well-rounded player also stands third in aces and fourth in blocks among regulars. Kellie Goss blocks 0.82 balls a set, tops on the squad. And Ashley Veach leads the back line defense, posting 4.55 digs a set.

Series History vs. the Rebels
South Carolina owns a 24-14 advantage in the series against Mississippi, including a win in Oxford last season. When playing at Ole Miss, the Gamecocks are 9-6 in the series, with a four-set win last year helping that mark.