SEC Play Opens on the Road at South Carolina, #12 Florida

Georgia (8-3, 0-0)
at South Carolina (8-4, 0-0)
Date: Friday, Sept. 27, 2019
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Columbia, S.C.
Arena: Carolina Volleyball Center

Media Information
TV: SEC Network
Streaming Video: SEC Network+
    Play-by-play: Sam Ravech
    Analysis: Jenny Hazelwood
Live Stats: GeorgiaDogs.com
Twitter: @UGAvolleyball

at #12 Florida (9-2, 0-0)
Date: Sunday, Sept. 29, 2019
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Gainesville, Fla.
Arena: Extratech Arena

Media Information
Streaming Video: SEC Network+
Live Stats: GeorgiaDogs.com
Twitter: @UGAvolleyball

First Serve
Georgia volleyball begins its Southeastern Conference schedule this weekend with a pair of road matches.

The Bulldogs travel to Columbia, South Carolina for a showdown on SEC Network with the Gamecocks at 7 p.m. Friday. It's then off to Gainesville, Florida for a meeting with the #12 Gators Sunday at 2 p.m.

Follow the Bulldogs
» Friday's match at South Carolina will air on the SEC Network. Sam Ravech and Jenny Hazelwood will have the call.
» Both matches will stream live on the SEC Network+ via ESPN.com and the ESPN app.
» Live stat links can be found on the volleyball schedule on GeorgiaDogs.com.
» Twitter updates will be available all season long on the official Twitter page of the Bulldogs, @UGAvolleyball.

BULLDOGS BULLETIN
Series Histories
South Carolina
- Georgia leads the all-time series 48-23
- The Bulldogs lost both ends of the home-and-home series last year
- On the road, Georgia is 20-12 in Columbia
- The Bulldogs won in five sets in Columbia in 2017, Tom Black's first season
- The Gamecocks have the advantage in the last 10 meetings, winning six of them
- The Bulldogs and Gamecocks will meet in Athens Nov. 22
Florida
- Georgia trails the all-time series 9-65
- Florida has won the last 17 meetings; Georgia's last win came in five sets at home on Oct. 26, 2008
- In Gainesville, Georgia has one two of 30 matches
- Last season's match in Gainesville saw Georgia win the second and third sets, taking a set from the Gators for the first time since 2010 and two since the last win in 2008
- Georgia's last win in Gainesville was in three sets on Nov. 7, 1986

A Look Ahead
SEC play comes to Stegeman Coliseum next week as the Bulldogs host Tennessee and Alabama. Georgia takes on the Lady Vols Friday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. The Crimson Tide then come to Athens on Sunday for a 2 p.m. first serve.

Upcoming Promotions at Stegeman
» FREE admission to all regular-season home matches; the Clear Bag Policy will be in affect
» All season long, the first 30 fans at Gate A at Stegeman Coliseum can sit courtside and will receive free food
Friday, Oct. 4 vs. Tennessee
» 90's Block Party - First 250 UGA students receive a free t-shirt and pizza
Sunday, Oct. 6 vs. Alabama
» Avengers Day - First 300 fans receive a free t-shirt
» First 150 kids receive free cupcakes
» Post-match autographs

Let's Recap
Georgia opened the home schedule last weekend hosting NC State and Georgia Tech at Stegeman Coliseum. The Bulldogs won both matches in four sets each. Freshman Kacie Evans recorded 16 kills in each match en route to earning SEC Freshman of the Week accolades. With the wins, Georgia extended its winning streak to five matches and concluded non-conference play 8-3. Friday's match against rival Georgia Tech saw 3,480 Georgia faithful flock to Stegeman Coliseum, officially becoming the largest home crowd in Georgia volleyball history and the biggest since 2012, also against Tech.

Evans Garners Freshman of the Week
Freshman Kacie Evans was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Sept. 23. The outside hitter from Wadsworth, Ohio tallied a season-best 16 kills in both matches at home last week, averaging 4.00 kills a set. She hit .467 against NC State Thursday evening, committing only two attack errors. She followed it up on Friday hitting .306 against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets along with recording a season-high four aces at the service line. She also averaged 2.00 digs per set over the two matches.

A New Volleyball Home Attendance Record
Georgia's home match against rival Georgia Tech on Sept. 20 set a new home attendance record of 3,480. The previous record was 3,222 set on Oct. 16, 2012 when Georgia hosted Georgia Tech in Stegeman Coliseum.

Strong Finish to Non-Con Play
After starting the first two weeks of the season 3-3, Georgia has won its last five matches to conclude the non-conference slate 8-3. Now through three seasons of non-conference tournaments under Tom Black, Georgia has compiled a 27-8 record. In 2017, Georgia was 10-3 while putting up a 9-2 mark a season ago.

Helping Hands
Senior setter Meghan Donovan, Georgia's lone senior, ranks sixth all-time with 4,092 career assists. That figure ranks sixth amongst active career leaders in Division I. This season, her 11.41 assists per set ranks ninth in the country and is currently second in the SEC. As a junior, she earned SEC Setter of the Week four times and ranked second in the league with 11.07 assists per set, coming in at 29th nationally.

The Bulldogs at Home
In the first two seasons under Tom Black, Georgia has recorded a record at home of 18-11. Season one saw Georgia go 12-5 in Athens. The 2018 season was the first full-time season for Georgia volleyball in Stegeman Coliseum as Georgia went .500 at 6-6. In home-opening tournaments the last two seasons, the Bulldogs are 7-0.

O Canada!
In February 2019, Tom Black was named the head coach of the Canadian Women's Indoor National Team. Volleyball Canada won the FIVB Women's Challenger in Lima, Peru in June, qualifying for the Nations League Tournament in 2020. While it did not qualify for Tokyo 2020 in Russia in August, Canada will have another opportunity to qualify in January.

Donovan Trains with USA National Team
Meghan Donovan spent a week in June training with the USA National Team in Anaheim, California. She was one of 28 student-athletes who earned the opportunity and was one of four setters on the roster.

2019 Schedule at a Glance
Twenty-nine matches are featured on the 2019 schedule with 11 set in Athens. The Bulldogs will open the home schedule with a tournament hosting North Carolina State on Sept. 19 and rival Georgia Tech Sept. 20. All home matches will be decided at Stegeman Coliseum once again this season. Southeastern Conference play begins on the road with back-to-back matches at South Carolina (Sept. 27) and Florida (Sept. 29). In all, seven teams on Georgia's 2019 schedule appeared in the 2018 NCAA Tournament and four finished in the AVCA Top 25.

A Look at the 2019 Squad
Georgia's roster features 15 total student-athletes, 10 returning from last season and five newcomers including four freshmen. Setter Meghan Donovan is the lone senior on this season's roster. Donovan enters her final season in the Red and Black ranked seventh all-time with 3,647 career assists. The five-member junior class features outside hitter Rachel Ritchie, Georgia's top returning kills leader (3.35 kills/set), and libero Kendall Glover who ranked top-10 in digs in the Southeastern Conference (4.09 digs/set) in 2018. Newcomers feature junior transfer opposite hitter/middle blocker Kaylah House from Coastal Carolina. Georgia also welcomes four freshmen.

SEC Play Opens on the Road at South Carolina, #12 Florida

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Meghan Donovan

Kacie Evans

Kendall Glover

Kaylah House

Rachel Ritchie