Gamecocks Fall to Alabama in SEC Tournament
SAVANNAH, Ga. – The South Carolina volleyball team (10-16, 4-11 SEC) fell 3-1 to Alabama (14-12, 5-10 SEC) in the first round of the 2025 SEC Volleyball Tournament Friday afternoon at the Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia.
1st SET: Alabama opened the first set strong, taking a 6-2 lead before a kill from Nia Hall and a Tide attack error brought South Carolina back within two at 6-4. The Gamecocks continued to chip away, with back-to-back first-ball kills from Laiya Ebo and a kill from Ava Leahy to narrow the gap to 8-7. South Carolina stayed within a point until a successful Alabama challenge created a 13-10 separation, but the Gamecocks responded with a push to tie things at 15-15 thanks to a block from Alayna Johnson and Leahy. Alabama answered with a 4-0 run to go up 19-15, yet the Gamecocks again battled back to even the frame at 21-21. The set remained tight down the stretch, but Alabama closed it out late to take the opener 25-23.
2nd SET: South Carolina controlled the second set from the first serve, jumping out to a commanding 9-1 lead behind back-to-back aces from Victoria Harris and a solo block from Leahy. Alabama chipped away with a small run to cut the deficit to 13-9 and later pulled within three at 18-15, but the Gamecocks held steady. A late Alabama challenge briefly extended the frame by overturning what would have been the set-winning point, but South Carolina closed it out on the next rally to take the set 25-22.
3rd SET: Alabama flipped the momentum in the third, racing out to a 9-1 lead and forcing an early South Carolina timeout. Hall broke up the stretch with a kill through two blockers, but the Tide maintained an edge, extending their advantage to 20-13 and continuing to capitalize on South Carolina errors. A 4-0 push put Alabama at set point, and the Tide finished the frame 25-14 to pull within 2-1 in the match.
4th SET: The fourth set was a back-and-forth battle early, with South Carolina briefly taking a 7-4 lead thanks to a solo block from Hall and pair of consecutive aces from Kimmie Thompson. Alabama responded with a run of its own to move ahead 10-8, and the teams remained tight until a 4-0 Gamecock surge got them back into the lead at 17-14. The Tide countered quickly to tie it at 17-17 and then pulled ahead late, reaching set point at 24-20. Ebo extended the set with a kill, but Alabama closed it out 25-21 to win the match 3-1.
Notables
- Six different Gamecocks had at least two kills; Nia Hall (15), Alayna Johnson (10), Laiya Ebo (9), Ava Leahy (6), Elise Marchal (6), Emily Beeker (2)
- Three different Gamecocks had 10 or more digs; Victoria Harris (18), Kimmie Thompson (12), Hall (10)
- All but one of the 11 players had at least one dig
- Two different Gamecocks reached double-doubles. Hall tallied 15 kills with 10 digs and Thompson had 18 assists and 12 digs
- Five different Gamecocks had at least one block
Up Next: The Gamecocks will find out if their postseason continues during the NCAA Selection show on Monday, Nov. 24.
