Georgia sealed the 3-2 win over South Carolina volleyball after an almost point-for-point battle throughout each of the five sets.
Georgia finished the night with 169 attacks, 66 kills and 64 digs, while South Carolina fell short with 158 attacks, 58 kills and 61 digs.
Set 1
The Gamecocks came out with a strong start, taking a 4-1 lead in the first five minutes of the set. However, Georgia’s offense made sure to come back and cause South Carolina to call a timeout after Georgia slammed three kills in a row.
Georgia’s blockers also presented a wall for South Carolina hitters to avoid which forced them to rely more on tipping to score points. South Carolina took over the momentum with junior Mikayla Robinson sealing the 25-22 set win with a solo block and three kills.
Set 2
Both Georgia's and South Carolina’s offenses came out strong into the second set, combining for four strong kills within the first nine points of the set. The set was tied at 17 until Georgia went on a three-point run and took the biggest lead in the set up to that point.
Senior Brittney McLean got three strong kills and rallied the Gamecocks back into the set. After the two teams exchanged points, a net violation and hitting error from the Gamecocks gave the Bulldogs the 28-26 victory in the second set.
Set 3
Georgia held the momentum for the majority of the set, but South Carolina never fell more than three points to the Bulldogs.
Toward the end, Georgia was up 23-20 and senior Mikayla Shields missed a serve putting Georgia at game-point. She then recovered with a hit Georgia could not return. After a South Carolina defensive error, the Bulldogs claimed set three 27-25.
Set 4
As the fourth set started, South Carolina was in a win-or-go-home situation down 2-1. The Gamecock’s defense struggled to dig Georgia’s attacks, but the game remained close.
“Defending them, I was supposed to stay sharper, and the block’s supposed to take anything deep cross,” libero Addie Bryant said. “So she still challenged us in the sharp angle there, which got me in a few runs.”
The Gamecocks did not, however, let the defensive errors get to them. Robinson clinched the set for the Gamecocks with a block and a kill. The Gamecocks won set four 25-19 and pushed the match to a deciding fifth set.
Set 5
South Carolina started with momentum and power they hadn’t had all night as senior Claire Edwards got a kill and McLean put up a block to extend the Gamecock lead to 5-1.
It seemed South Carolina had the match in the bag, but after a double call on setter Courtney Koehler, a South Carolina miss-serve and a defensive error, Georgia ran with the momentum to get two kills to win the set and match.
“At times we were rolling through and our block set up was good, we were just a little bit inconsistent as far as being able to put longer stretches of play,” head coach Tom Mendoza said.
Despite the loss in the record books, Bryant said the Gamecocks are looking to grow from this loss.
“I think it just gives us more drive to win on Sunday," Addie Bryant said. "We just are going to take what we did tonight, learn from the good and bad, and just roll into Sunday hoping to win."
Up Next
The Gamecocks are set to face Auburn this Sunday, Sept. 29. First serve is at 1:30 in the Carolina Volleyball Center.
Auburn is 6-6 on the season and will be looking to bounce back after a 0-3 loss to Florida. The game can be viewed on SEC Network Plus.