Series MatchUP
Thursday, March 18 | 6:00 p.m. EST
Friday, March 19 | 6:00 p.m. EST
USC Upstate (3-7, 3-7 Big South) vs. UNC Asheville (6-6, 6-6 BSC)
G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
TV: ESPN+ | Via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN App
PxP: Brock Bowling
Color: Sarah Gildersleeve (Friday only)
Series History
Upstate trails the all-time series against Asheville 11-5 dating back to the first meeting in 1986. The Bulldogs have taken the last four meetings between the two teams, most recently taking the match in straight sets back on Oct. 19, 2019 in Spartanburg.
Last Time Out
The Spartans are coming off a series sweep against Presbyterian College on the road this past week. Upstate bounced back after dropping the first set Thursday night and took the next three sets to get back into the win column. The offensive effort was balanced as four Spartans recorded double-digit kills to take down the Blue Hose 3-1 (23-25, 25-18, 25-21, 25-22). The Spartans completed the season sweep Friday night with a win in straight sets (26-24, 25-15, 25-21). The match was Upstate's first straight-set win of the year, and the first time the Spartans have won back-to-back matches since September 2019.
Asheville picked up a pair of five-set victories over Radford last week at home. With the pair of wins, the Bulldogs moved their record back to the .500 mark this spring to 6-6.
Ones to Watch
Upstate – Outside hitter Breeana Gamueda led the Upstate offense and defense against PC. She averaged a team-high 3.43 kills per set and team-high 4.71 digs per set across the two matches. In the first match, she tallied an Upstate career-high 14 kills and 10 digs in a 3-1 win before collecting 23 digs with 10 kills in a 3-0 sweep the next night. She also had a pair of blocks and service aces on the week.
Setter Bruna Avila averaged 10.86 assists per set this past week against PC. She collected 76 total with 43 of them coming in the first match for an Upstate career-high in a 3-1 win. She added 33 more the next night in a 3-0 win. Additionally, she had three service aces, four blocks, and 17 digs between the two matches.
Middle blocker Nikki Deslatte was just named Big South Freshman of the Week for her efforts against PC. She tallied 15 kills, a .433 kill percentage, and 17.0 points, and ten of those kills were for a career-high in a 3-1 win on Thursday. She averaged 2.50 kills per set and had four blocks on the week as well. On Friday, she put up the set-ending block in the last two frames to help Upstate to a 3-0 sweep in the match.
UNC Asheville – Peyton McClinton totaled 48 kills to go with 21 digs in the two victories over the Highlanders last week. She now leads the Big South with 144 kills.
Grace Volk paces the league with 353 assists this spring and has started and played in every set for Asheville. She has four double-doubles and finished with a career-high 56 assists in a match at Presbyterian earlier this month.
Home Game Attendance Information
Single game tickets are not available for sale to the general public or visiting teams. Due to limited seating capacity in accordance with social distancing guidelines, tickets for this season are reserved for player families and USC Upstate students. For more information, click here.
UP next for the Spartans
The Spartans continue their home stand next week when they host Radford to wrap up their 2021 home slate. The first match is set for 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 25 followed by match two on Friday at 4 p.m.
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