Volleyball Loses at Missouri
COLUMBIA, MO. – South Carolina (13-9, 4-7 SEC) lost in straight sets at Missouri (18-5, 9-2) on Sunday evening. The Gamecocks were unable to slow down the SEC’s top offenses, allowing the Tigers to hit .351, but the turning point would be an 11-1 advantage in blocks for the home side that limited South Carolina to just 33 kills on a .123 hitting percentage.
1st SET: The two sides played to a draw offensively, with 15 kills compared to 14 for the Tigers, but it would be a perceived weak point for Missouri that made the difference in its 25-23 victory. The home side entered the match ranked last in the SEC and 303rd in the country for blocks, but won the battle at the net with four denials compared to none for the Gamecocks. The Tigers broke away from a back-and-forth start thanks to a 5-1 run that made it a 12-8 advantage and Carolina would play catch-up the rest of the way. A 5-2 run late would get the Gamecocks back within one, 21-20, but the Tigers would close out the set.
2nd SET: The Gamecocks were error-prone to start the second game, Missouri jumped out to a 10-3 lead with five points coming from Carolina errors and the Tigers cruised to a 25-13 win and 2-0 set lead. The unforced miscues would bite the team throughout the game, particularly behind the service line with six errors.
3rd SET: Missouri’s net defense played a leading role again in the third, the Tigers forced an early timeout from South Carolina after three consecutive blocks pushed the home side’s advantage to 9-4. Missouri would not trail once in a 25-18 set to close out the match. The Gamecocks finished with a match-low for kills (eight) and were out-hit .300 to .000 and doubled up with a match-high 17 kills for Missouri.
NOTABLE
- Missouri entered Sunday with one of the best offenses in the nation, ranking 1st in Division I for kills per set (14.75), fifth for hitting percentage (.299) and 20th for service aces per set (1.96).
- South Carolina had nine service errors in the first two sets, but it was less about the total and more about timing. The Gamecocks committed eight of those nine errors immediately after siding out, limiting the team’s ability to string points together.
- The team did not record its first service ace until it was 20-15 in the third set, by Oby Anadi. It is her fourth career ace and first since 2022.
- Victoria Harris had her second consecutive 15-dig game, her 11th for the season. The freshman surpassed 300 digs this season and moves into the top 20 for most in a single season for the rally scoring era.
- The Gamecocks did not record a block until it was a 21-17 lead for Missouri in the third set. The defense finished with just the one block, the fewest in a match since Oct. 30, 2015 against Florida.
- Missouri is the sixth opponent in SEC play to reach double-digit blocks against the Gamecocks. South Carolina has four double-digit blocking games for the season.
- The offense failed to have an attacker reach double-digit kills for the first time since the season opener against Kansas. Riley Whitesides and Alayna Johnson shared the team lead with nine apiece.
UP NEXT: The team’s road stretch continues on Wednesday; after a stop home on Monday, the Gamecocks will fly out to Baton Rouge for a mid-week matchup at LSU. The Tigers (13-10, 5-7 SEC) lost at Tennessee and Kentucky this past weekend. South Carolina’s last win at LSU came in 2016, the Tigers are on a six-game win streak in the series with four of the six coming on their home court.
