Dec. 6, 2002
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – It was d?j? vu in Chapel Hill as the South Carolina volleyball team lost a tough 3-1 NCAA Tournament match for the second straight year. South Carolina ends the 2002 campaign with a 22-7 record. North Carolina (32-3) advances to the NCAA round of 16. Niece Curry led the Gamecocks with 19 kills while Cally Plummer followed with 18. South Carolina out killed UNC 73-72 and out dug the Tar Heels 86-81.
“North Carolina had some great plays,” said South Carolina Head Coach Kim Christopher. “It was a fun match filled with a lot of action. It is always tough to lose.”
South Carolina’s all-time record against North Carolina falls to 5-11. South Carolina has never advanced past the second round of the NCAA Tournament in school history. The Tar Heels had two players post 20-plus kills as Molly Pyles and Laura Greene both had 23 apiece.
“You can’t help but get fired up when you play North Carolina,” said Plummer. “This is tough. Even though it is the end of this season, for us six seniors, it is now a new season for life.”
UNC’s Pyles posted 11 kills in game one to give the Tar Heels a 30-23 win over the Gamecocks. South Carolina hit .214 to UNC’s .295 in game one. In a close battle, the Gamecocks were within three at 20-23, but the Tar Heels pulled away to take the 1-0 lead in the match. Plummer led South Carolina with five kills.
Down by 23-26, South Carolina rallied for a comeback win in game two to tie the match 1-1. After being down by seven at one point, the Gamecocks went on a 7-2 run to finish out the game. Nadia Sefferovich connected on a kill to tie the match 28-28 and Niece Curry then followed with a kill to give USC their first lead of the game. Sam Alban and Curry then teamed up for a block assist to finish the Tar Heels. Curry paced the Gamecocks with six kills while Alban recorded two block assists to limit the Tar Heel hitting to .196.
The Tar Heels took a 2-1 lead in the match when they won game three 30-26. Tied 21-21, UNC grabbed the lead and went on a 9-5 run for the win. The Tar Heels out hit the Gamecocks .356 to .250, while Alban hit .429 with three kills in seven attempts. Both teams recorded 18 digs.
Game four was close early on with the teams battling to a tie at ten, but North Carolina quickly took the lead and never looked back. Curry led the Gamecocks with six kills while Berna Dwyer added five. South Carolina hit .213 in game four while North Carolina hit .356.
