USC Upstate 3, The Citadel 1
SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? The Citadel (6-16, 0-9 Southern) played one of their best matches of the season against USC Upstate (7-14, 3-9 Atlantic Sun) Tuesday night, but were unable to take home a victory after falling to the Spartans, 3-1 (19-25, 24-26, 25-21, 22-25). Rachel Sanders recorded her sixth double-double of the season with 16 kills and 14 digs, marking a season-high in kills. Tatum Jestila and Emily Hill each recorded double-digit digs with 19 and 15, respectively.
Hill recorded a season-high of 15 digs, while Jestila recorded 19 digs. Jessica Maas set a new career-high in kills with 19 and led the offensive effort of the Bulldogs with a hitting percentage of .531, earning her second highest hitting percentage of the season. The Bulldogs hit over .300 in two sets. Offensively, the Bulldogs recorded 60 kills on 145 total attacks. The Bulldogs showed strength on defense, tallying nine blocks and 72 digs. Amanda Beal dominated on defense with five blocks, while Sanders contributed with three block assists.
In the first set, the Bulldogs put on an impressive outing but were overpowered by the Spartans. The Bulldogs recorded a .444 hitting percentage, but the Spartans’ outside dominated, hitting .548. The Spartans struck first, taking the lead 2-0, before a service error by Morgan Thomas would no longer leave the Bulldogs scoreless. A service ace by Jestila tied the set. Three other ties would take place before the Spartans jumped ahead. The last tie score was 5-5 before a Spartan kill would give USC Upstate the momentum to claim the lead. USC Upstate took the set, 25-19.
The Bulldogs looked to redeem themselves in the second set, putting on a battle against the Spartans. A seesaw battle took place with 13 tied scores and eight lead changes. The Spartans scored the first point of the set before Maas would put the Bulldogs on the scoreboard. A service error by Sanders put the Spartans back up, but the Bulldogs tied the score with another kill by Maas. The Bulldogs’ first three points would come from Maas, who put the Bulldogs up 3-2 with a service ace.
The back and forth battle would continue, forcing the set to linger until a two-point deficit was observed. A 24-24 tie would force an extra effort out of both teams. A kill by Jovana Lubura followed by a ball handling error by Hill would put the Spartans on top, 26-24.
In set three, the Bulldogs refused to give up and continued to fight. The Spartans would strike first once again, but not for long. An attack error by Lubura would tie the set at 1-1, followed by a kill by Sandra Campbell to put the Spartans back on top. A service error by the Spartans would tie the set at two apiece. The Bulldogs broke loose and took control with a kill from Sanders. After a 10-10 tie, the Bulldogs controlled the set, not allowing the Spartans to jump back ahead. Six tied scores and three lead changes would take place throughout the set, with the Bulldogs taking the set, 25-21. The Bulldogs earned a .324 hitting percentage.
The Bulldogs carried the momentum from the third set into the fourth, with the set starting a little differently than the first three. The Citadel struck first with a kill from Maas. An attack error by Thomas would put the Bulldogs up 2-0 before a kill by Jenna Leslie would put the Spartans on the board. The back and forth battle from the previous sets continued throughout the set with nine tied scores and three lead changes. A 14-14 tie would end the battle after an attack error by Blaine McAllister put the Spartans ahead. Once the Spartans jumped out in front, they never looked back. The Spartans took the match with a 25-22 victory in the fourth set.
The Bulldogs look to carry their impressive performance and confidence, both on offense and defense, into their two conference road matches this weekend. The Citadel will travel to the mountains of North Carolina to face Appalachian State and Western Carolina.