GREENVILLE, N.C. – USC Upstate head volleyball coach Ronda Shirley earned her first win as a Spartan on Friday afternoon as the Spartans came back from two sets down to defeat the Norfolk State Spartans 3-2 (27-29, 17-25, 25-18, 26-24, 15-6) in their opening match of the Pirate Invitational from Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum.
USC Upstate improves to 1-6 on the season while Norfolk State drops to 0-7 overall.
The Spartans recorded eight of the first 13 points of the opening set and took an 8-5 lead off a kill by McKenna Kirkpatrick. Norfolk State would then go on a 15-7 run and took a 20-15 lead, forcing USC Upstate into a timeout. The Spartans came out of the timeout and went on a 9-2 run of their own and held a 24-22 lead after a kill by Gloria Ikenegbu. The set would go into extra points but Norfolk State scored the final two points to win 29-27.
Behind the serving of Scout Hoffmeier to start the second set, USC Upstate took an early 7-6 lead after back-to-back service aces. The Spartans tied the set twice midway beginning at 14-14 following a combination block from Ikenegbu and Mackenzie Lauer. USC Upstate would be held to three points after that as Norfolk State closed out the set on an 11-3 run for the 25-17 victory.
The Spartans jumped out to an early 10-6 lead in the third set capped by a pair of kills from Ikenegbu. Emily Russell extended USC Upstate's lead to 17-12 a few plays later with her kill. Ikenegbu kept the Spartans lead at five points, 20-15, after her kill. Norfolk State got as close as 21-17 late, but USC Upstate scored the final three points, capped by a block from Ikenegbu and Kirkpatrick, to win the set 25-18.
The fourth set featured a total of 10 ties and five lead changes. Norfolk State scored five of the first seven points only to see the Spartans answer with an 8-3 run and lead 10-8 on a kill by Mikenzie Young-Mullins. Norfolk State later went in front by four and then held a 21-19 advantage, forcing USC Upstate into a timeout. The Spartans recorded four straight points after the timeout and took a 23-21 lead on a block from Russell and Kirkpatrick. After Norfolk State evened the score at 24-24, USC Upstate collected the last two points and won 26-24.
The Spartans never trailed in the fifth set which started by recording the first three points. After Norfolk State responded with three consecutive points, USC Upstate broke the set open courtesy of an 11-1 run, which featured seven straight points, and held a 14-4 lead after Kirkpatrick's kill. Russell secured the 15-6 set victory, and 3-2 match win, with her kill.
Stats of the Match
· The win marked the first for head coach Ronda Shirley at USC Upstate and 586th of her career.
· Kirkpatrick recorded her second straight double-double after finishing with 11 kills and 11 digs.
· Russell led all players with a match-high 15 kills.
· Annalisa Mendoza set a new career-high with 38 assists.
· Hoffmeier also achieved a new career-high of 11 digs.
· Mackenzie Marcum led the Spartans defensively with 21 digs.
· Young-Mullins contributed 15 digs and Ikenegbu 11 kills.
· Taylor Eichelberger had a team-high 12 kills for Norfolk State.
· Makenzy Johnson posted 25 assists and Myleah Carter 19 digs.
· For the second straight match, USC Upstate finished with double-digit blocks after recording 12.0.
Up Next
· The Spartans close out play at the Pirate Invitational on Saturday with two matches.
· USC Upstate faces George Washington at 10 a.m. followed by host East Carolina at 7 p.m.
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