SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Back at the G.B. Hodge Center to begin the team's final homestand of the season, USC Upstate volleyball pushed Winthrop in sets one and three as the Spartans' fought all night before ultimately succumbing to the Eagles in straight sets by scores of 22-25, 16-25, 19-25.
 
Feeding off a raucous crowd comprised of the remainder of Upstate's athletic programs on the final Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) Green Game of the fall seasons, the Spartans fed off the crowd's energy both offensively and defensively with numerous kills and blocks sending the crowd into a frenzy throughout the night.
 
It was a balanced attack for the Upstate offense as six hitters finished with four or more kills with a quartet of attackers finishing with six or more kills. Leading the way was junior middle blocker Nikki Deslatte who slammed home seven terminations from the middle, hitting .385 in the process as junior right-side hitter Ali Jansen, sophomore outside hitter Ashleigh Nicoll, and senior right-side hitter Briana Strobert added six kills apiece.
 
Another standout for the Spartan offense was the sneaky play of junior setter Emma McElveen who passed out 17 assists and dumped in a season-best three kills, doing so without an error as she's now earned a kill on each of her last five attack attempts while going on two. Fellow setter, freshman Savannah Page complemented McElveen with her fifth career double-double as she tallied 13 assists and a team-best 13 digs on the evening.
 
At the net, Upstate's block also helped excite the crowd throughout the match with several momentum-stopping blocks as the team totaled 7.0 team blocks. Posting six total blocks on the night, freshman middle blocker Ady O'Grady had a hand in all but one of the team's blocks Friday as she supplemented her six blocks with seven digs and four kills.
 
UP Next for the Spartans
For the final time during the 2022 season, the Spartans competed in front of a home crowd at the Hodge, doing so against Charleston Southern Saturday afternoon. As part of Senior Day festivities, Upstate will honor Briana Strobert prior to and throughout the match.
 
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