Oct. 27, 2002
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Cally Plummer notched 13 kills and Megan Hosp recorded four service aces but it wasn’t enough to defeat No. 3 Florida as the Gators won 3-0 and handed No. 21 South Carolina their first Southeastern Conference loss of the season. Florida (20-1, 10-0 SEC) snapped South Carolina’s 11-match winning streak and their 10-match home winning streak. Game scores were 24-30, 23-30, and 30-32.
South Carolina falls to 17-4, 10-1 SEC as the Gamecocks were swept for just the second time this season. Carolina is now 1-3 vs. ranked opponents while Florida, who extends their winning streak to 17 matches, is now 4-1 against ranked opponents.
“It was a fun match,” said Carolina Head Coach Kim Christopher. “It was frustrating that we couldn’t win a game off of them, but I’m proud of the way our team fought. We showed outstanding leadership. I’m happy with our effort and the way we fought at critical times. Florida was winning the rally and that was the key today.”
South Carolina fell behind 10-6 in game one, but rallied to bring the score within two points at 21-19 off of a Sarah Morgan kill. However, that would be the closest the Gamecocks would get as Florida would pull away and not look back, winning 30-24.
Game two was closer than game one as the game was tied 13 separate times. Plummer led the Gamecocks with five kills and hit .300 in game two. Florida went on a 7-0 run late in the game to pull ahead 28-21 and Carolina was unable to come back, dropping game two 30-23. Florida held Carolina to .106 hitting, while the Gators hit .343.
Game three would prove to be a nail biter with ten ties and three lead changes. Sophomore Niece Curry led Carolina in game three with 5 kills, hitting .556. The Gamecocks’ hitting improved greatly to .465 while Florida hit .409.
The Gamecocks now host Ole Miss and Mississippi State in their final home matches of the season. First serve against Ole Miss will take place on November 1 at 7:00 p.m.
-USC-
