BUIES CREEK, N.C. – The USC Upstate volleyball team dropped a hard fought match on Friday night as Campbell defeated the Spartans 3-2 (8-25, 25-22, 25-20, 24-26, 15-10) in front of a crowd of 322 fans.
 
USC Upstate (5-11, 1-3 BSC) showed no signs of bus lag as they came out firing on all cylinders in the opening set. As a team the Spartans hit .462 in in the set and recorded 12 kills in the opening stanza. The two teams appeared to be evenly matched in the opening quarter as they traded points back-and-forth, the Spartans eventually gained a little bit of breathing room at 9-6 and then USC Upstate took over and dominated the opening stanza. The Spartans finished the opening set on a 16-2 run and appeared to be in complete control of the match in all three phases.
 
In the second set the Spartans appeared to be cruising to another easy set win, leading 8-2 after the first 10 points in the frame. Then Lailah Green rattled off five consecutive kills to pull the Camel's back within a point of the Spartans. Moments later Campbell went on a 6-1 run to take a 17-14 lead over USC Upstate. The two teams traded points until Campbell won three consecutive points to take a late 22-19 lead, the lead was too much to overcome for the Spartans and the Camels tied the game at one set all.
 
 For the first time in three sets it was all Campbell in the third set as the Spartans were stunned by an offensive outburst in the opening moments of the third frame. Trailing 7-1 the Spartans looked for a spark and found one in their middle hitters. A 6-3 run put the Spartans back within a point of the Camels and then moments later another 3-0 spurt had USC Upstate out in front 14-13. A back-and-forth battle ensued between the two squads but it was Campbell who came away with the final momentum shift. With the matched tied at 20-20 the Camels won the final five points of the set to take a 2-1 lead in the match.
 
In the fourth set the two teams battled back and forth in the opening moments of the fourth set. USC Upstate eventually worked their way into a 10-7 lead early in the frame to a hold the advantage over the Camels. Late in the set a 4-0 run by the Spartans gave them set point at 24-22, but the Spartans had to wait a few more points to collect the set win as an attack error and a service ace tied the set at 24-24. A service error by Campbell gave the Spartans the window they needed as Emily Russell served up a service ace to force a decisive fifth set against the Camels.
 
Campbell raced out to a 10-4 lead in the final set and despite a valiant effort by USC Upstate, the Spartans ran out of opportunities to obtain points. Campbell took the final set 15-10 and USC Upstate falls to 1-4 on the season in five set matches.
 
Stats of the Match:

• Four USC Upstate players ended the match in double-digit kills, Emily Russell (15 kills), Gloria Ikenegbu (11 kills), McKenna Kirkpatrick (11 kills) and Mikenzie Young-Mullins (10 kills).
• Young-Mullins recorded her third double-double of the season with 10 kills and 10 digs.
• Annalisa Mendoza recorded 45 assists in the match and Mackenzie Marcum led the team in digs with 14.
• Campbell had three players with double-digit kills, Lailah Green (22 kills), Allena Heath (13 kills) and Melody Paige (10 kills).
• USC Upstate ended the match with a .297 hitting percentage and recorded 12.0 total blocks in the match.

 
Next Up:

• USC Upstate will stay on the road tomorrow afternoon and take on Hampton University at 4:00 p.m.

 
Follow USC Upstate volleyball on Facebook (UpstateAthletics), Twitter (@UpstateVB), Instagram (@upstatespartans) and YouTube (USCUpstateAthletics).