SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Welcoming themselves back to the G.B. Hodge Center following a four-match road swing, USC Upstate volleyball captured its sixth sweep of the season—the fourth in six matches at the Hodge—downing Radford in straight sets Friday night, improving their record in its friendly confines to 5-1 this season.
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 3; Radford 0 (25-22; 25-18; 25-22)
Records: USC Upstate (11-9; 4-4 Big South); Radford (3-14; 2-6 Big South)
Location: G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
How It Happened
Back on its home court for the first time in four matches, USC Upstate wasted little time in earning its 11
th victory of the season, putting Radford away in straight sets behind a balanced offensive and defensive effort while pressing the service game to the tune of 10 service aces—the most for the team in a Big South match this season.
Leading the balanced offensive effort, an attack that saw five players record six or more kills, sophomore middle blocker
Ady O'Grady recorded her 10
th match reaching double-figure kills, doing so for the second straight match as she recorded a team-best 10 terminations. Nearing double-digits in the kill column, sophomore outside hitter
Savannah Page slammed home a season-high eight kills, fashioning a .286 hitting efficiency.
Joining O'Grady and Page with six or more kills against Radford, junior outside hitter
Ashleigh Nicoll, senior middle blocker
Nikki Deslatte, and sophomore right-side hitter
MJ Klaumann registered seven, six, and six kills, respectively. Deslatte accomplished her six kills behind a .267 hitting percentage, the second-highest individual hitting efficiency for a Spartan in the match.
Defensively, Upstate held its opponent to a sub-.100 hitting efficiency for the fifth time this season, holding the Highlanders to a .093 hitting percentage. At the net, the Spartans claimed 8.0 total team blocks and forced Radford into 21 attack errors, leading to the sub-.100 attack efficiency. Deslatte led the Spartans with five total blocks on the evening, moving over 250 total blocks for her career, becoming the fourth player in the program's Division I era (2007-pres.) to reach the milestone.
Behind the block, two players dug up 10 or more balls as the Spartans picked up 49 total balls on the night. The reigning Big South Libero of the Week, junior libero
Julia Gladhill scooped up a team-high 12 balls, reaching double-figures for the 14
th time this season. With 10 digs on the night, senior outside hitter
Zelasia Edwards rounded out the group with 10 or more digs.
In the service game, two Spartans tied career-highs, combining to land seven of the team's 10 service aces. Nicoll paced Upstate with four service aces while Spangler added three winners, as both players tied career-highs.
UP Next for the Spartans
Closing out the two-match homestand at the G.B. Hodge Center, Upstate returns to action Saturday against High Point. First serve is slated for 4 p.m. ET.
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