Gamecocks Drop Road Match at Missouri, Set Individual Milestones

COLUMBIA, MO. – The South Carolina volleyball team (7-12, 1-8 SEC) dropped a hard fought battle to Missouri (14-7, 5-4 SEC), earning its first set win since Oct. 12 in the 3-1 decision. Despite the result, several Gamecocks turned in record-breaking performances, with multiple players contributing standout numbers across the stat sheet.

1st SET: The Gamecocks jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the opening set after a kill and ace from Ava Leahy. Missouri got on the board with an attack error and tied it up at 3-3 following a long rally. The two teams traded points through the midpoint of the set, with South Carolina holding a slight edge at 15-13 going into the media timeout. Tigers then earned their largest lead at 21-18 following a 4-0 run, but the Gamecocks answered with a block from Leahy and Elise Marchal, and Leahy’s second ace of the night to close within one. Back-to-back Tiger errors gave South Carolina a 22-21 advantage before Missouri closed the set on a 3-1 run to take a 1-0 lead in the match after a 25-23 win.

2nd SET: In the second, South Carolina again grabbed an early lead before a 5-0 Missouri run forced a timeout. The Gamecocks quickly tied it up at 7-7 and regained the lead at 9-8 following a Tiger net violation. The Gamecocks led by as many as three at 15-12, but Missouri rallied back and took a 21-19 advantage to force another South Carolina timeout. The Garnet & Black battled back with a 3-0 run that ended on an ace from Victoria Harris to go up 22-21. Missouri retaliated and reached set point at 24-22, but the Gamecocks responded quickly, tying it at 24-24 after a cross-court kill from Marchal and a Tiger net violation. A Missouri error put Carolina ahead 25-24, and an ace from Elizabeth McElveen sealed the 26-24 win to even the set.

3rd SET: Set three saw both teams trading points early before Missouri began to pull away. The Tigers led 7-6 and won their first challenge of the night on a net fault, extending the score to 8-5. A string of South Carolina errors and a 3-0 Missouri run gave the home team a 21-14 advantage, forcing a timeout. The Gamecocks found a brief spark behind back-to-back kills from Marchal, but the Tigers held on to take the set, 25-19.

4th SET: In the fourth, the Gamecocks and Tigers continued to battle point for point before South Carolina went on a 5-0 run, fueled by two kills from Alayna Johnson, to take a 15-10 lead. A successful Missouri challenge trimmed the lead to 14-11, and the Tigers later tied it up at 19-19 after a 3-0 run. Johnson’s 19th kill of the night gave Carolina a 23-22 edge and put them on the verge of set point, but Missouri tied it once again and closed out the frame with the final two points to win the set, 25-23, and the match, 3-1.

Notables 

• The Gamecocks put forth a balanced effort from the offense with three different players in double digit kills and two different players with more than 20 assists 
• South Carolina reached its second best hitting percentage in SEC play (.233)
• Alayna led the offense in a record breaking night, setting a new career high 19 kills for her 11th match of the season in the double digits. She narrowly missed having a double double after adding nine digs
• Emily Beeker reached a career high 11 kills, leading the team with a .381 hitting percentage on 21 attempts and just three errors
• Elise Marchal tied her season high 10 kills
• Victoria Harris tied her career high 27 digs
• Victoria Hill tied her career high 14 digs

Up Next: The Gamecocks round out the week at Vanderbilt on Sunday, Oct. 26 for a 2:00 p.m. (ET) first serve.