Gamecocks to face Bulldogs in first SEC match of 2012 season
Last Friday, the Gamecocks defeated Clemson for the first time since 2009, sweeping their rivals to kick off a successful weekend in the Carolina Clash tournament.
South Carolina won two matches on Saturday to improve its record to a perfect 11-0 in nonconference play.
USC looks to open SEC play on a high note this Friday. Across the net will be the 6-3 Georgia Bulldogs, who have yet to win a match on the road this season.
Despite Georgia's shortcomings on the road thus far, Swanson made it clear that the Gamecocks won't be overlooking the Bulldogs on Friday.
"I think they're well-coached and have some good athletes. They're going to be tough," Swanson said. "Because it is SEC play, everybody is amped up to start off on a good note."
However, the outcome of Friday's match will affect much more than just the win-loss record. Swanson said the game carries heavy weight on the recruiting front for both programs.
"For us it's another signature match because we're very close to Georgia in proximity and we recruit a lot of the same kids," Swanson said. "The more we win these kinds of games, the more talent we're going to attract to help build a little faster or better than them."
Swanson also noted that the current state of the South Carolina and Georgia volleyball programs have a stunning resemblance, making Friday's match even more of a measuring stick for the program's development.
"I think we're two similar programs in that we're both kind of in the building process right now," Swanson said. "Two new coaches going into our second seasons trying to gain an identity as to what type of team we're going to build in the SEC, which is a really tough conference in volleyball right now."
Junior outside hitter Juliette Thevenin has been a force for the Gamecocks thus far, posting 11 or more kills in each of South Carolina's last three matches. Thevenin, along with senior setter Taylor Bruns, have provided a surge of kills and offensive power for the Gamecocks, particularly this past weekend when South Carolina defeated both Clemson and Winthrop in three straight sets and UAB in four.
The important thing this Friday, according to Swanson, will be the atmosphere that goes along with the home court advantage the Gamecocks hold.
"The more students we can get back out there to see the exciting product that we're putting out there on the floor, the better our chances. It's a really big deal for us to have a rowdy crowd, it's a momentum-driven sport."
South Carolina drew 1,512 fans to the Volleyball Competition Facility when it defeated Clemson. The crowd was the third-largest in the facility's history.
"We had the third largest crowd against Clemson last week," Swanson said. "It sure would be cool to break the record and have the biggest crowd in our history on this Friday."