OXFORD, Ohio – McKenna Kirkpatrick recorded a team-high 11 kills on Friday morning as the USC Upstate volleyball team opened its 2019 season falling 3-1 (11-25, 27-25, 22-25, 12-25) to the Virginia Tech Hokies in its first match of the Miami Best Western Sycamore Inn Invitational from Millett Hall.
USC Upstate falls to 0-1 on the season while Virginia Tech improves to 1-0 overall.
Kirkpatrick led all Spartans with 11 kills and hit .229 for the match. Emily Russell and Gloria Ikenegbu both contributed seven kills while Russell compiled a team-best .235 hitting percentage. Playing in her first collegiate match, Scout Hoffmeier dished out 27 assists. Mikenzie Young-Mullins and Makenzie Marcum compiled 12 and 11 digs, respectively.
Cera Powell had a match-high 12 kills for the Hokies while Marisa Cerchio and Anabel Zier had 11 and 10 kills. Talyn Jackson dished out 24 assists and Logan Mosley contributed 19 digs.
Virginia Tech opened the first set on a 13-2 run capped by six consecutive points. USC Upstate got as close as nine points, 16-7, on a bad set by the Hokies. Virginia Tech led by as many as 14 points three times with the last coming at set point to put the final score at 25-11.
The teams traded the first 10 points of the second set and saw the Spartans tie the score at 5-5 on Kirkpatrick's kill. After the Hokies responded with six of the next seven points, USC Upstate posted a 10-3 run to go ahead 16-14 after back-to-back kills from Ikenegbu. A Virginia Tech service error kept the Spartans ahead 22-20. Facing set point, USC Upstate reeled off two straight points and went in front 25-24 after Kirkpatrick's kill. The Spartans scored the final two points, highlighted by a combination block from Hoffmeier and Mackenzie Lauer, to win 27-25 and even the match at 1-1.
The Hokies began set three on an 8-2 run and later went ahead 10-3 on a kill. USC Upstate answered with an 8-4 run and trailed 14-11 following a kill by Kirkpatrick. The Spartans got as close as two points late, 19-17, on back-to-back Virginia Tech attack errors. USC Upstate eventually tied the score at 22-22 when Lauer connected on a kill. The Hokies recorded the final three points for the 25-22 victory.
Young-Mullins gave the Spartans an early 2-1 lead in the fourth set with her service ace. Virginia Tech would then go on a 9-1 run to extend its lead to 10-3. USC Upstate came back courtesy of a 6-3 run and trailed 13-9 after Ikenegbu and Lauer combined for a block. The Hokies broke the set open with six consecutive points. After the Spartans cut their deficit down to seven, Virginia Tech registered the final six points to win 25-12 and capture the match 3-1.
Stats of the Match
· USC Upstate finished the match with a .107 team hitting percentage highlighted by a .281 mark in the second set.
· Kirkpatrick recorded her eighth career match with 10 or more kills after leading the Spartans with 11.
· Young-Mullins picked up her 16th career match with double-digit digs while Marcum added her fourth.
· Lauer also had six kills in the season opener.
Up Next
· The Spartans face Northwestern at 5 p.m. in their second match of the Miami Best Western Sycamore Inn Invitational.
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