Gamecocks Scrub Tar Heels in Three Sets
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina volleyball capped a perfect home opening weekend with a three-set sweep of North Carolina (4-1) on Sunday afternoon, handing the Tar Heels their first loss of the season. The Gamecocks (4-1) run their win streak to four games, led by 12 kills from Riley Whitesides and eight kills on just 11 attacks by Oby Anadi.
1st SET: North Carolina’s blockers gave it a big advantage early in the match, scoring five of its first 12 points off blocks alone. Despite the defensive effort from the visitors, South Carolina did not wilt from the early momentum shift and forged ahead with a game-changing 6-0 run that turned a 14-12 deficit into a 18-14 advantage that it would not give back. Four different Gamecocks came up with kills during that 6-0 run, capped by Whitesides. She would bear the brunt of the early UNC blocking success, but closed strong with three of her four kills coming in the team’s final seven points on the way to a 25-18 victory.
2nd SET: The Tar Heel offense took its turn in set two, enjoying its best set of the day but it would again not be enough to put the Gamecocks away. North Carolina opened the set with a 7-3 lead, but South Carolina would chip away with modest two- and three-point bursts before finally drawing even again at 16. After ties at 19 and 20 points, UNC appeared to find some daylight after scoring on back-to-back plays to make it a 22-20 advantage, but a kill from Anadi and Whitesides would knot the score again.
Back-to-back attacking errors for Noth Carolina gave the Gamecocks a set-point opportunity at 24-23, but the game would extend well beyond 25 points before it was decided. Out of a 26-all tie, the Tar Heels committed a service error and then an unforced attack error sailed out to complete the comeback for the Gamecocks and a crucial 2-0 set lead.
3rd SET: The South Carolina offensive efficiency in the third set put the game away down the stretch, the Gamecocks clinched the sweep with a 25-16 win behind a .600 team hitting percentage and three different attackers posting three or more kills. The set was tighter than the final margin suggested, North Carolina held a lead as late as 12-11 and the two sides were tied at 14 before the Gamecocks made their move. Sophomore Tireh Smith got a kill to make it an 18-16 lead for South Carolina and the Tar Heels would not score again. Junior Alayna Johnson served out an 8-0 run behind the service line, Anadi chipped in two blocks, Whitesides and Smith each added kills and the Tar Heels offense came unstuck late to seal the match.
NOTABLE
- Oby Anadi was an efficient attacker over all three sets, putting away a season-best eight kills on just 11 attempts without a single error. Her .727 hitting percentage is the highest by any Gamecock with 6+ kills in a match this season and is a career high for the senior middle.
- Ellie Ruprich capped a strong weekend defensively, adding five blocks (two solo) over the three sets Sunday. She finished the weekend with nine blocks, five of them solo stuffs.
- After ending set one with four attacking errors, Riley Whitesides went for nine kills and just two more errors over sets two and three. She finished the weekend hitting .313 with 4.67 kills and 2.83 digs per set.
- Whitesides passed Caryn Case (1988-91) for 14th in career kills for the program’s all-time history. She now has 1,086.
- Sunday was North Carolina’s first time playing the Gamecocks in Columbia since 2004. The two teams have only played nine times since 1990, with South Carolina securing the second win over the last five meetings.
QUOTABLE: TOM MENDOZA
On how the team adjusted to North Carolina’s physicality
“There were times that North Carolina played at a very high level and we had a hard time slowing them down, and our message to the team was to just keep playing. We just moved on to the next point and that was our goal, was to just outlast them. I thought we did a good job at that, especially the second set when North Carolina looked the most comfortable. Sets one and three, we were able to put a little more pressure on them and knock them out of their rhythm a little more.
It’s a really important lesson, we’re going to play teams that can score against us throughout the year, both in the last two weeks of non-conference and then certainly in the SEC, so it’s a good lesson for our team that we’re able to do that.”
UP NEXT: It will be a busy week ahead for the team, next up will be a Tuesday night match at home against the College of Charleston before another weekend tournament kicks off on Friday. First serve against the Cougars on Sept. 10 will be 6:30. Friday begins a three-day tournament in the Carolina Volleyball Center, the Gamecocks will play Stetson at 1 p.m. and Florida International at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13. After a Saturday off, the team finishes the weekend against Wake Forest at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 15.
