Gamecocks Lose in Four Sets at Wake Forest
WINSTON SALEM, N.C. – South Carolina (3-2) lost 3-1 at Wake Forest Saturday night, with errors behind the service line hurting the team most in the final two games. The Gamecocks were led on offense by 15 kills from junior Riley Whitesides.
1st SET: The two teams traded points for most of the opening game, each team was siding out at over 75 percent before a run mid-way through the set helped South Carolina strike first with a 25-22 win. At 15-all, the Gamecocks got kills from three different hitters and added a pair of blocks to go on a 7-2 run. That would be enough breathing room to hold off the home team, giving Carolina the early momentum.
2nd SET: Set two started similar to the first, the teams traded points and then runs, first Wake Forest used a 6-0 run to earn a 13-7 lead but South Carolina used a trio of Lauren McCutcheon kills to tie it back up with a 6-0 run of its own. The Deacons pushed ahead late with a 22-17 lead and the Gamecocks tried one more time to rally back, but two service errors not only stunted runs but accounted for half of Wake’s final four points in a 25-22 score to even the match 1-1.
3rd SET: Sophomore Oby Anadi did just about everything a volleyball player could do to energize her team early in the third; the sophomore went for a block, a kill and a service ace in a span of four points to give the team an early 10-5 advantage. The home side chipped away slowly at the deficit, eventually working its way back to 20-19. Out of a Gamecock timeout, three different Carolina servers would commit a service error, keeping Wake Forest in it long enough to rally late. The Deacons used three Gamecock attack errors in their final four points to swing the score in their favor, 27-25 and take a 2-1 lead in the match.
4th SET: The service line yips continued into the fourth for South Carolina; four of Wake’s first nine points came off errors on serve. Playing catch-up, the Gamecocks were finally able to push ahead at 18-16 thanks to a 3-0 run boosted by two Whitesides kills, but the home side scored eight of the final 10 points of the match to win 25-21 and clinch the win.
NOTABLES
- South Carolina finished with 17 service errors, its most since Sept. 20, 2019 vs. Maryland, a five-set victory. Wake finished with seven aces to six errors, South Carolina four aces to 17 errors – a 14-point difference behind the line.
- Three Gamecocks finished with five or more total blocks, led by Ellie Ruprich’s seven.
- Dalaney Hans notched a double-double, leading the team in both digs (15) and assists (27).
UP NEXT
The team will have a short turnaround from the weekend, playing a rare Tuesday game next when it travels north to face Clemson on Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. Coverage can again be found on ACCNX.
