SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Seeking to build upon the team's conference-opening sweep last Saturday, USC Upstate volleyball improved its record at the G.B. Hodge Center with its second Big South win to open league play, gutting out a five-set victory over Charleston Southern Friday night. The Spartans' 2-0 start to Big South play is the first for the program since joining the league ahead of the 2018 season and the first 2-0 start to league play since 2016, a 2-0 start to ASUN play.
Upstate's defense proved formidable, continuing a string of matches holding its opponent to a sub-.200 hitting efficiency—doing so for the second straight match to open conference play and the ninth time this year—limiting Charleston Southern to a .150 hitting percentage The Spartans' floor defense scooped up 100 total digs (20.0 per set) in the match, the first 100-plus dig match for the program since Nov. 17, 2016, while collecting nine team total blocks.
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 3; Charleston Southern 2 (25-20; 24-26; 25-17; 19-25; 15-13)
Records: USC Upstate (9-5; 2-0 Big South); Charleston Southern (6-10; 0-2 Big South)
Location: G.B. Hodge Center | Spartanburg, S.C.
How It Happened
Seeing the two teams alternating set victories with Upstate taking sets one and three and Charleston Southern taking sets two and four, Friday's match came down to a decisive fifth set as the Spartans headed to the winner-take-all set for the third time this season. Despite seeing the Buccaneers rattle off the first four points of the final game and be the first to reach the eight-point mark, the Spartans remained resilient, fighting back to capture the set and the match.
The victory proved to be historic for junior setter
Kayla Spangler, who became the first setter in the Division I era (2007-pres.), the first setter in the 25-point rally scoring era (2008-pres.), and the first setter since 2005 to pash out 60 or more assists in a match. Her career-high 61 assists (12.2 per set) helped lead Upstate to a .208 hitting efficiency while being the sixth 60-plus assist match in program history and the 11
th 60-plus assist match in the NCAA this season.
Senior libero
Caroline Cleveland added another career night for the Spartans, captaining a floor defense that saw five players reach double-digit digs and pick up 100 total digs, scooping up a career-high 34 digs, including 12 in the match's first set. Her 34 digs tied for the second most in a match in the program's D1 era and the most in a single match since Kaleigh Kelley picked up 34 balls versus Jacksonville on Nov. 4, 2016.
Leading the offense, sophomore middle blocker
Ady O'Grady registered a career-best 18 kills, fashioning a .371 hitting percentage. Just behind O'Grady, junior outside hitter
Ashleigh Nicoll tied a season-high with 17 kills with senior middle blocker
Nikki Deslatte threw down 13 kills, joining the duo in double-figures. A kill shy of double-digits, sophomore right-side hitter
MJ Klaumann tied a career-high with nine kills.
Joining Cleveland with 10 or more digs in the match, a pair of Spartans recorded double-doubles as Nicoll (17 kills and 18 digs) and Spangler (61 assists and 13 digs) claimed their sixth and fourth double-doubles, respectively. Rounding out the quintet of Spartans with double-digit digs were senior outside hitter
Zelasia Edwards and junior defensive specialist
Julia Gladhill with 13 and 11 digs, respectively.
UP Next for the Spartans
Closing out the team's three-match homestand, Upstate returns to Big South play Saturday afternoon, welcoming Presbyterian to the G.B. Hodge Center. First serve between the Spartans and Blue Hose is slated for 4 p.m. ET.
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