HATTIESBURG, Miss. – USC Upstate volleyball opened the fall 2021 season Friday at the Southern Miss Classic where they split a pair of matches on the day. First, the Spartans swept Mississippi Valley State (25-11, 25-4, 25-14) for their seventh straight win and program-record sixth straight sweep and 21st consecutive set won. Later that evening, Upstate battled the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns and dropped that match 3-1 (18-25, 25-23, 23-25, 14-25) to start the season off 1-1.
"Overall I am pleased with how the team competed today," said head coach Ronda Shirley. "In the first match, they stayed consistent with their focus and attention to detail. In the second match, we faced a very solid team in Louisiana. They challenged us, but I feel like we competed the whole way through. If we minimize the amount of unforced errors, it turns into a win."
Kelly Wiedemann and Breeana Gamueda led the Spartan attack on the day, each averaging over three kills per set across both matches alongside a double-double. Wiedemann hit an Upstate career-high .583 percent against MVSU with another Upstate career-high 15 kills. She also collected 13 digs in the match.
Gamueda put down an Upstate career-high 15 kills and a team-high 22 digs against Louisiana after hitting an Upstate career-high .368 percent against MVSU. Newcomer Allie Hamsher dished out 52 assists on the day, 33 of those coming against Louisiana. Mackenzie Marcum averaged 4.33 digs per set while she, Wiedemann, Gamueda, and Hamsher all collected over 20 digs and averaged over 3.00 per set across both matches.
Match One: USC Upstate 3, Mississippi Valley State 0
Upstate quickly jumped out to a 12-2 lead in the first set against MVSU off eight straight kills followed by a service ace from Gamueda and another kill from Wiedemann. The Delta Devils would come back as close as 16-10, but Upstate took nine of the last 10 points to put the set away.
The second set went even quicker as the Spartans found themselves with a dominating 21-3 lead, and they went on to score the final four points of the set to take a 2-0 lead in the match. After a set-opening kill from Nikki Deslatte in the third, MVSU used a pair of blocks to take a 3-1 lead. The two teams traded points with the Delta Devils still holding onto the lead, but a MSVU attack error sparked a 7-2 run for the Spartans who were able to take a 16-11 lead. Upstate then closed the set out on a 9-1 run and clinched the match on a kill from Gamueda.
Match Two: USC Upstate 1, Louisiana 3
Louisiana jumped out to a 12-5 lead in the opening set, forcing an Upstate timeout. The Spartans came out of that timeout with back-to-back kills from Gamueda, and later took three straight points to cut their deficit to 15-10. Louisiana pushed its lead back up to 18-10, and despite going point-for-point the rest of the match, Upstate could not catch up and dropped its first set since winning 21 straight dating back to March 11 in the spring 2021 season.
The Spartans took the lead first in the second set and continued to deny Louisiana the chance at taking it back, eventually building up to a 14-10 advantage on a pair of kills from Alexis Mareko and Deslatte. The Ragin' Cajuns however responded with six straight points to take a 16-14 lead, but a Deslatte kill and Julia Gladhill ace evened things right back up. Upstate later took five straight despite a Louisiana timeout for a 22-18 lead, and Louisiana threatened at the end by cutting its deficit to just 24-23, but Widemann sealed the deal on a kill form Hamsher.
The third set was another close one as Upstate once again held the early lead, building up to a 12-8 advantage on a pair of kills from Mareko and an ace from Hamsher. Louisiana went on a 6-1 run to take its first lead of the set at 17-16, but Upstate took the lead right back at 20-19. It came down to the wire as the set was all even at 23-23, and Louisiana was able to put down back-to-back set-clinching kills.
Louisiana opened the fourth set on a six 6-0 run and ultimately never looked back as the Ragin' Cajuns eventually held a 16-7 lead. The Spartans showed some life with three straight kills from Wiedemann to cut their deficit to 17-10, but Louisiana pushed its lead to 22-13 and later took the match with the last three points of the set.
UP Next for the Spartans
The Spartans close out their weekend in Hattiesburg tomorrow with a match against Southern Miss at 1 p.m. EST.
JOIN UP
Make a difference in the lives of USC Upstate student-athletes! Donate to the USC Upstate U Club today!
Keep UP with the Spartans
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics
Twitter | @UpstateVB @UpstateSpartans
Instagram | @UpstateVB @UpstateSpartans
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans
