Sept. 21, 2008
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Behind a dominating offensive performance, South Carolina swept Georgia, 25-11, 25-16, 25-17, on Sunday afternoon in front of 583 fans at the Volleyball Competition Facility. The Gamecocks stretch their winning streak to 10 and now hold a 10-1 record on the season and 2-0 in Southeastern Conference play. The Bulldogs fall to 7-6, 0-2 in league outings.
The Gamecocks hit .438 as a team, the second-best output of the season behind a .453 showing against Winthrop last weekend in the Carolina Challenge. Junior outside hitter Ivana Kujundzic led the way again, getting 15 kills and four digs in the match. Middle blockers Megan Laughlin and Belita Salters both had eight kills, while sophomore outside hitter Annie Thomas added seven. All four hit over .400 on the day, with Salters topping the quartet with a .636 percentage. Junior libero Sarah Cline contributed 14 digs and a pair of service aces, while junior setter Bridget Denson-Dorman had 39 assists, two aces, two digs and two blocks. The Gamecock defense was stellar as well, holding the Bulldogs to a .111 hitting percentage overall and keeping the SEC’s leading attacker, Maria Taylor, to just three kills and a .000 hitting percentage. Erika Clark and Valentina Gonzalez led Georgia with eight kills each. Taylor did have a team-high seven digs and two aces.
Georgia had more attack errors (6) than kills (5) in the first set, leading to the Gamecocks’ 25-11 final advantage. Cline had a part in that, making four digs and getting both of her aces in the frame. Kujundzic had five kills in the first frame, while the Gamecocks hit .565 as a team. South Carolina got out to a 10-2 lead and ended the set by taking 11 of the final 14 points.
The second set saw the Garnet and Black race out to an 8-2 advantage behind two Salters kills and back-to-back aces by Denson-Dorman. Georgia would get back within three at 10-7 and 11-8 before South Carolina would run again, getting an 18-11 advantage moments later. Cline ended the frame when her pass found the floor, handing the Gamecocks the 25-16 set victory. Kujundzic had five more kills in the set.
Georgia got its first lead of the match in set three, getting 2-0 and 3-2 advantages before the Gamecocks responded with a five-point skein to make it 7-3. Georgia got within two at 12-10 before a four-point run, which included a Hannah Lawing ace and a Denson-Dorman block, made it 16-10. Kills by Kujundzic and Laughlin ended the frame and the match. The Gamecocks hit .423 in the set, led again by Kujundzic’s five kills. Senior Petra Lorenzi had four digs in the frame as well.
The Gamecocks had the advantage in all statistical categories besides blocks, as Georgia was credited with 4.5, compared to South Carolina’s 4.0.
South Carolina hits the road next weekend to start a four-match league road swing. Friday’s contest at Mississippi starts at 5 p.m. CDT, while Sunday’s match at Arkansas begins at 2:30 p.m. CDT.
