The South Carolina volleyball team opened the Gamecock Classic with a 3-0 run Friday night against East Tennessee State University.
The Gamecock Classic is a 3-day volleyball tournament. South Carolina hosted its first game against ESTU, Campbell and Clemson.
The first set started as a back-and-forth run between the Gamecocks and Buccaneers, with each team taking the lead after tying the score eight times. South Carolina made several attack and service errors, allowing ETSU to get the points needed to tie the game. The Gamecocks fought, however, making several kills to keep up with the Buccaneers.
"I'm really happy with how we executed today as a whole," head coach Sarah Rumely Noble said. "There's always going to be some first match jitters, and thankfully we get to play another one tomorrow against Campbell ... and then hopefully we're playing our best match of the weekend against Clemson."
The Gamecocks took the lead halfway through the first set with a 3-0 run, setting the score to 13-10, with a strong defense against the Buccaneers. Using this momentum, South Carolina took the lead with a 5-0 scoring run, using strong offense skills.
The Gamecocks finished the first set strong, 25-18, with freshman outside hitter Victoria Hill and junior outside hitter Nia Hall leading the team with six kills each.
ETSU made several attack errors in the first half of the second set, but so did the Gamecocks. The Buccaneers were able to keep up with the Gamecocks, however, keeping the score tied six times. The back-and-forth plays continued, with each team taking the lead once again.
After reaching a score of 10-10, South Carolina called a timeout. The Gamecocks took the lead in the second half once again, but the Buccaneers kept up with some strong attacks, gaining some points back.
Several South Carolina players got kills against ETSU, keeping its momentum through the rest of the second set. The second set ended with South Carolina securing the win, going 25-18 again.
The Gamecocks carried the momentum into the third set, with strong serving from senior setter Kimmie Thompson and three kills from senior outside hitter Alayna Johnson. ETSU continued to struggle with attack and service errors, putting them behind.
The Buccaneers continued to stay behind the Gamecocks throughout the third set, but the team played with good blocking and attacks, keeping the Gamecocks on its toes. South Carolina had some receiving troubles, causing the Buccaneers to catch up with a 3-0 run at the end of the third set.
With Hill's blocks and defense, the Gamecocks maintained its power and defeated ETSU 25-22.
Hill's offensive dominance
Leading the Gamecocks to victory, Hill scored 12 points and had 28 attacks throughout the game. She ended the game with a hit percentage of .250 and a kill percentage of .393. Hill said her connection with her teammates helped her do as well as she did today.
"We've been working really hard in practice, working on different sets and different plays run and different shots I can hit," Hill said.
Hill also played a good defense, getting two blocks and four digs. Before the game against Clemson on Sunday, Hill said she wants to concentrate on more defensive plays.
Defense digs from Harris
Sophomore libero Victoria Harris excelled during the game with her serves and digs. Harris led the team along with Thompson, getting eight digs and five assists.
"I really enjoy stopping other people's celebrations," Harris said. "That's what motivates me to go make the digs and make the plays and especially go make the play for Tori (Hill) to go get kills."
Troubles receiving the ball
The Gamecocks struggled with receiving the ball from ETSU during the third set, leading to the Buccaneers almost tying the score. The Buccaneers were able to score five points in the third set as a result of the Gamecocks having attack errors.
"I think that our serve-receive will continue to put ourselves in a good spot when we get to that match on Sunday," Rumely Noble said. "I'm just proud of our fight and our composure."
What's next?
The Gamecocks hosted the Campbell Camels on Saturday at 4 p.m. for the second day of Gamecock Classic. South Carolina won against Campbell, 3-0.