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Gamecocks Begin SEC Play with Georgia and Texas A&M
Women's Volleyball  . 

Gamecocks Begin SEC Play with Georgia and Texas A&M

ATHENS, Ga. – The University of South Carolina volleyball team (7-3, 0-0 SEC) begins conference play on the road for the second consecutive season, heading to Athens to face Georgia (8-2, 0-0 SEC) on Wednesday, Sept. 23 at 7:00 p.m. The Gamecocks round out the week in College Station against defending national champion No. 16 Texas A&M (6-5, 0-0 SEC) in their first ranked matchup of the season on Sunday, Sept. 27 at 3:30 p.m. (ET).

The Georgia match will be streamed on SEC Network while the Texas A&M match is slated for SEC Network+. Live streaming is available for both matches on StatBroadcast. Links to each can be found on the schedule page. Fan can also follow along on social media through @GamecockVolley on X and @GamecockVB on Instagram.

LAST WE SAW THEM

The Gamecocks split their results last week, narrowly falling 3-2 to ETSU on Tuesday night before bouncing back in a 3-0 sweep over Virginia Tech to close the 2026 non-conference schedule on a high note.

WEEK FIVE NOTABLES

  • Four Gamecocks had 10 or more kills against ETSU; Ceci Vance (15 – ties her career high), Olivia Borgman (15), Ava Leahy (12) and Elise Marchal (10).
  • Four players also had double-doubles against the Buccaneers; Vance (15 kills and 11 digs), Borgman (15 kills and 13 digs), Marchal (10 kills and 11 digs) and Kiana Dinn (43 assists and 13 digs).
  • Lilly Gillespie led the team in digs for both matches, dishing out 19 against ETSU and 18 against Virginia Tech.
  • Against Virginia Tech, the team tied for the highest number of aces this season (7).
  • Freshman Ella Girvna had a breakout match against ETSU, recording 10 blocks for a new collegiate career high.
  • Jillian Bohannon led the team with 17 assists against Virginia Tech, a collegiate career high.
  • The Gamecocks had the second lowest hitting percentage of the season against Virginia Tech, holding the Hokies to .070.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS

The Bulldogs enter the match on a five-game win streak, starting the season with an 8-2 record. Georgia opened its season with three wins in the Classic City Clash tournament, dropping only one set. The Bulldogs suffered their only defeats of the season against No. 21 Indiana and No. 14 Purdue, before bouncing back to defeat Notre Dame 3-1 at home. The Bulldogs won all three of their matches in the South Alabama tournament before wrapping up non-conference play with a 3-2 victory against Georgia Tech. Bianna Muoneke leads the offense with 172 kills (4.53 per set), accompanied by Chloe Elarton with 338 assists (8.89 per set) and Ana Julia Bleeker with 17 service aces. Defensively, Kendal Kemp leads with 43.0 blocks (1.26 per set) while Muoneke has 81 digs (2.13 per set). Muoneke was voted to the 2026 Volleyball Preseason All-SEC Team following a 2025 season where she earned an AVCA All-America honorable mention and First Team All-SEC honors. The Bulldogs were picked to finish sixth in the SEC preseason coaches’ poll.

Georgia leads the series record between the two programs 55-27, winning the last three matchups. In the last meeting between the two teams the Gamecocks kept it close, winning set two 25-12, and trailing by four or less in the other three sets before ultimately falling 3-1.

SCOUTING THE AGGIES

Texas A&M comes into its first SEC matchup of the season against South Carolina with a 6-5 record. The Aggies opened up the season ranked No. 8 nationally, and have faced seven ranked programs; Louisville, SMU, Purdue, Indiana, Stanford, Wisconsin, and Creighton. Texas A&M has picked up ranked wins over No. 4 Stanford and No. 20 Creighton. Offensively, The Aggies are led by outside hitters Natalie Ring with 120 kills (3.08 per set) and Kyndal Stowers with 96 kills (4.17 per set). Both players were named to the AVCA Player of the Year Watch List ahead of the 2026 season. Defensively, freshman libero Gabi Rodriguez with 146 digs (3.561 per set) has made an impact in the back row, and middle blockers Eliza Sharp with 41 blocks (1.49 per set) and Kaia Castle with 34 blocks (0.93 per set) are holding in front of the net. The Aggies are defending National Champions, earning their first title in 2025, and were picked to finish third in the 2026 SEC preseason coaches’ poll.

Texas A&M leads the series record between the two programs 19-3. The Gamecocks took a set off of the Aggies last season, winning the third 25-21, and fought down to the wire in the opening frame, only falling 31-29.

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