SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Beginning the final homestand of the season, USC Upstate volleyball fought through a four-set battle Friday night versus Gardner-Webb as the two teams split the first two sets of the match, heading to the locker room between the second and third sets deadlocked at one game apiece. However, the Runnin' Bulldogs pulled away in sets three and four, taking the match.
 
Game Information
Score: Gardner-Webb 3; USC Upstate 1 (25-21; 19-25; 25-21; 25-20)
Records: USC Upstate (12-12; 5-7 Big South); Gardner-Webb (13-11; 7-5 Big South)
Location: G.B Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
Heading into the final full weekend of the Big South slate and opening the team's final homestand, USC Upstate responded to an early deficit, taking the next game to tie the match before battling in each of the next two sets before succumbing to Gardner-Webb.
 
For the third straight match, the Spartans' offense remained balanced as four players recorded seven or more kills—the third straight match with four or more players reaching seven or more kills—as two Spartans totaled double-figure terminations. With 15 kills, junior outside hitter Ashleigh Nicoll tied for the match lead in the category and reached double-digit kills for the third straight match, doing so behind a .256 hitting efficiency.
 
Joining Nicoll in double-figures, sophomore right-side hitter MJ Klaumann registered a career-high kill total for the second consecutive match as she collected 12 total kills while fashioning a .370 hitting percentage Friday night. Closing out the group of Spartans with seven or more kills, sophomore outside hitter Savannah Page and senior middle blocker Nikki Deslatte tallied eight and seven kills, respectively, with Page tying her season high in the category.
 
Directing the offense, junior setter Kayla Spangler passed out 35-plus assists for the third straight match, totaling 38 against Gardner-Webb. Entering the match with 990 career assists, she became the sixth member of the program's Division I era (2007-pres.) 1,000-Assist Club as she exited the match with 1,028 career assists.
 
Defensively, Upstate totaled double-digit team total blocks for the fourth time during Big South play and the first time since doing so against Gardner-Webb on Oct. 14. Sophomore middle blocker Ady O'Grady led the Spartans with five total blocks while Deslatte tallied four total blocks, each collecting a solo block as part of their individual totals. Behind the block, junior libero Julia Gladhill picked up 18 digs (4.5 per set), including scooping up 10 balls in the first set.
 
In service, the Spartans tallied eight total service aces with three players recording multiple winners. Tying a career-high, Edwards landed four service aces, doing so for the third time this season and the fourth time in her career. Gladhill and Nicoll joined Edwards with multiple aces, landing two apiece.
 
UP Next for the Spartans
Closing out the team's final homestand, Upstate returns to the Hodge for its penultimate match of the season, hosting Winthrop on Senior Day. First serve for the match is set for 4 p.m. ET.
 
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