Gamecocks Face Mississippi State & Alabama at Home
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina volleyball (7-9, 1-5 SEC) returns to the Carolina Volleyball Center for week eight of the 2025 season, continuing conference play with Mississippi State on Friday, Oct. 17 at 7:00 p.m. before facing Alabama on Sunday, Oct. 19 at 1:00 p.m.
Both matches will be streamed on SEC Network+ with live stats available on StatBroadcast. Links to each are on the volleyball schedule page. Fans can also follow along from home with in-game updates on X, @GamecockVolley.
PROMOTIONS
Friday’s match against Mississippi State will be the breast cancer awareness pink out game. The first 250 fans will be given pink rally towels (sponsored by Prisma Health) and the first 350 students will receive a pink t-shirt.
WEEK SEVEN NOTABLES
- The Gamecocks split last week’s road trip results, falling 3-1 to Oklahoma before bouncing back with their first SEC win of the season in a 3-1 victory at Arkansas
- Against both opponents, Emily Beeker led the defense with five or more kills – recording nine for the second time this season against Arkansas which ties her career high
- Ava Leahy had a standout game against Arkansas, becoming the third Gamecock this season to hit .500 or better with 10 kills which helped lead the offense. The junior also set two season (10 kills and 18 attempts) and one career high (3 aces) in the match
- South Carolina showcased depth in both matches. Against Oklahoma, six different players had an ace and five Gamecocks had two or more blocks. In the Arkansas match, six players had five or more kills, nine of the ten Gamecocks in the match got at least one dig and six had two or more blocks
- In both matches, two Gamecocks had double digit kills. Nia Hall led with 13 at Oklahoma followed by Alayna Johnson with 10. Against Arkansas, Johnson tallied 14 for her 10th match of the season with double digit kills followed by Leahy with 10
- Victoria Harris helped guide the defense to the win at Arkansas with 21 digs, marking her fifth time this season in the 20s
- Against both opponents the team had 12 blocks – its second highest amount this season
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Mississippi State started the season on a dominant 12-0 win streak which included a 3-2 victory over Florida to start conference play. The Bulldogs suffered their first loss of the season to Auburn, falling 3-0. In SEC play, the Bulldogs hold a 3-3 record, coming off a 3-0 loss to No. 9 Texas A&M. State has a strong offensive presence, ranking 39th in the NCAA for both kills per set (13.61) and hitting percentage (.202). Sophomore Cayley Hanson is ranked sixth in the NCAA and second in the SEC for assists, averaging 10.85 per set. On the offensive side, freshman Lindsey Mangelson leads State with 224 kills this season, averaging 4.39 per set which ranks 27th in the NCAA and sixth in the SEC.
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON TIDE
Alabama opened their season winning eight of the first nine games, only interrupted by a 3-0 loss to Cincinnati. The Tide began conference play on a four-match losing streak before earning their first SEC win in a 3-0 sweep over LSU. In their most recent match against then-No. 2 Texas, the Tide picked up a set win in the opening frame led by Victoria Barrett with 12 kills and 14 digs, but ultimately fell 3-1. Barrett leads the team with 211 kills this season, averaging 3.70 per set. Hannah Parant ranks first in the SEC and sixth in the nation for aces per set with 0.63, tallying 36 total this season. The redshirt freshman also leads the team with 501 assists, earning 8.79 per set.
