Alabama
South Carolina
Volleyball Sweeps South Carolina for 21st Win
11/15/2013 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Nov. 15, 2013
COLUMBIA, S.C. - Mattie Weldy paced the Alabama volleyball team with 11 kills, as the Crimson Tide posted a 3-0 (28-26, 25-23, 25-18) Southeastern Conference win over South Carolina on Friday night. With the win, Alabama improves to 21-7 overall and 8-5 in SEC play, remaining in fourth place in the conference standings. The Gamecocks drop to 12-15 overall and 3-11 in conference play.
Weldy was the only player to reach double figures in kills for the Tide, as Katherine White, Brittany Thomas and Krystal Rivers had seven kills each. White had a .417 hitting percentage with four total blocks including a solo and three assisted. Thomas finished the night with nine digs to match Kryssi Daniels for team-high honors.
Andrea McQuaid had four kills on seven attempts to hit .571 in the match, while adding six digs. Sierra Wilson chipped in the 34 assists and five digs, while Bria Green had a kill and eight digs.
Alabama finished the night with a .206 hitting percentage, while holding South Carolina to a .177 mark. Alabama was being out-hit .171 to .158 after two sets, before posting a .346 hitting percentage in the third set. South Carolina had six blocks compared to five by the Tide and Alabama out-dug the Gamecocks, 46-43.
South Carolina's Juliette Thevenin led all players with 18 kills, after posting 16 kills through the first two sets, including nine in the first. Thevenin, who hit .310 in the match, notched a double-double as she also led all players with 11 digs. Dessaa Legros finished the night with 10 kills and Jacqy Angermiller led the Gamecocks with four assisted blocks.
After trailing early in the first set, Alabama went on a 7-0 run to take a 10-7 lead. The lead reached as many as four points (16-12) after a kill by Rivers and an error South Carolina's Angermiller. The Crimson Tide led 24-20 before South Carolina went on a 5-0 run to take a 25-24 lead. A serve error ended the Gamecocks run, before Bama collected three of the next four points to win the set 28-26.
The second set saw the teams go back and forth until the Tide scored back-to-back points for a 21-19 lead. Bama's biggest lead of the set for either team was 23-20, when a kill by Weldy gave the Tide a 3-point lead. South Carolina answered with three straight points, before a kill by Weldy and a block by White and Weldy ended the set for a 25-23 Crimson Tide win.
With the score tied 7-7 in the third, Alabama went on a 4-0 run thanks a kill by McQuaid, a couple errors by South Carolina and a kill by Thomas. South Carolina got as close as three at 18-15 following a kill by Legros, before the Tide stretched their lead to 23-17 following a solo block by White. After a Bama serving error, a hitting error by Legros and a block by Weldy and White ended the set with a 25-18 Alabama win, closing the match out in three sets.
Alabama will return to SEC play on Sunday when it travels to Gainesville, Fla., to take on the No. 5 Florida Gators. First serve for the match at the O'Connell Center is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT. The match will be televised on CSS and ESPN3.com with Larry Vettel and Missy Whittemore calling the action.
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