May 7, 2015

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina sand volleyball team is ranked No. 17 in the final DiG Magazine Collegiate Sand Volleyball Poll released Thursday.

The Gamecocks, who remained at No. 17 for a fourth-straight DiG Poll, finished their second season with a 14-7 record, which is nearly triple the win total of their inaugural season (5-12).

Carolina played one of the toughest schedules in the country with duals against five teams ranked in the final poll. The Gamecocks played No. 3 Pepperdine, No. 5 Florida International, No. 7 Florida State, No. 8 Georgia State and No. 19 Tulane (twice). Carolina defeated Tulane in both matchups.

South Carolina’s pairs combined for an 83-58 overall record, including a 65-40 mark in dual play. Four Gamecock pairs finished the season with winning records. The senior tandem of Paige Wheeler and Megan Kent set the school record for overall wins in a season (20-10), while senior Jade Hayes and freshman Macie Tendrich set the record for dual wins in a season (16-5).

DiG Magazine Collegiate Sand Volleyball Poll
1. Southern California
2. Long Beach State
3. Pepperdine
4. Hawaii
5. Florida International
6. Stetson
7. Florida State
8. Georgia State
9. Arizona
10. UCLA
11. Washington
12. Nebraska
13. Pacific
14. Stanford
15. Grand Canyon
16. Loyola Marymount
17. South Carolina
18. Santa Clara
19. Tulane
20. CSU Bakersfield