Bulldogs Drop Five-Set Thriller to Gamecocks

Friday, November 22

Athens, Ga.

7 p.m.

University of Georgia

19-8,11-5SEC

South Carolina

17-10,9-6SEC

South Carolina

Georgia

Photo by: Kristin M. Bradshaw

November 22, 2019 | Volleyball

Box Score

ATHENS, Ga. – The University of Georgia women's volleyball team fell in five sets to South Carolina Friday at Stegeman Coliseum (25-19, 23-25, 19-25, 25-17, 13-15).

In the last five meetings with South Carolina (17-10, 9-6), four have gone five sets. With the Gamecock win, Georgia and South Carolina split the season home-and-home series.

Freshman Kacie Evans tallied a season and career-best 24 kills and 16 digs, good enough for her seventh double-double of her rookie campaign.

Junior Rachel Ritchie tallied 14 kills while sophomore Sage Naves tied a career-best 13 kills. Junior Kianna Young also topped the double-digit mark with 10 kills.

Defensively, senior Meghan Donovan put up 15 digs, registering a double-double of her own with 51 assists, and junior Kendall Glover had 14. Naves tallied a team-best seven blocks.

Down 6-4, the Bulldogs (17-10, 9-6) went on a 5-1 run to capture a 9-7 lead in set one. Tied at 12, a 7-1 Georgia run opened a 19-13. South Carolina pulled within three, 21-18, but Georgia wrapped the set winning three of the next four to win the set. The Bulldogs claimed set one 25-19 behind eight first set kills by Evans. As a team, Georgia hit .355 to open the match.

The Bulldogs jumped out to a quick 6-2 lead, forcing an early Gamecock timeout in set two. With Georgia ahead 18-13, South Carolina won six of the next seven to tie the frame at 19 all. After Georgia regained the one-point advantage, the Gamecocks won three of the next four to go ahead 22-21. Georgia managed to tie it at 23 but South Carolina wrapped the set with back-to-back points to win the set, 25-23. Evans added five kills in the second while Naves contributed four of her own. Both teams hit exactly .343 in the second set.

With Georgia ahead 4-2 in set three, the Gamecocks rattled off a seven-point run to take a 9-4 lead and exhausting both of Georgia's timeouts. Georgia pulled within two, 9-7, before South Carolina used another run, this time of 6-1 to open up a 15-8 lead. Georgia won three-straight rallies, including back-to-back blocks to cut the lead to five and force a Gamecock timeout, 19-14. Gamecock errors allowed Georgia to pull within three, 21-18. South Carolina was able to hold on and win the set 25-19 and take a one-set lead in the match.

A hot Bulldog start prompted an early Gamecock timeout in set four with Georgia ahead 8-2. The Bulldogs used the early advantage to roll to a 25-17 win in set four, tying the match and forcing a fifth set. Ritchie recorded six kills in the set while Naves added five.

Using the momentum from set four, Georgia opened the fifth up 5-2. The Bulldogs led 8-4 at the end change. After the end change, South Carolina won five of the next six to tie the set at nine all. With Georgia ahead 12-10, the Gamecocks rolled on a 5-1 run to swipe the set away, 15-13, and win the match.

Up next, Georgia hosts #15 Florida in the 2019 home finale Sunday. First serve against the Gators is set for 12 p.m., noon, at Stegeman Coliseum. Senior Meghan Donovan will be recognized prior to the match. Sunday's match will also feature American Girl Doll Day. The first 150 kids with their American Girl Dolls will receive matching t-shirts.

Georgia Head Volleyball Coach Tom Black
On the match...
"It was a hard-fought match. South Carolina is a pretty good team. We're two pretty even teams, and we just came up a little short."

On preparing for Sunday's match...
"It's kind of cliche, but we got to wake up and wipe it off. Once we get done with practice tomorrow and reset, we know we have another big test against Florida on Sunday."

On Meghan Donovan's Senior Night...
"I hope it's our best. I hope we give our best. It's all you can ask for and what we need to do."

On South Carolina taking momentum in the second set...
"I just think they're a good team. We got a little soft with our swings and started making hitting errors. It just started compounding and we didn't respond very well until the fourth set. We're proud of that response. I wish we played a little bit cleaner at the end but we just dipped for a little bit."