Bulldogs Defeat South Carolina in Front of Record 8,376 Fans

Friday, October 11

Athens, Ga.

7 p.m.

University of Georgia

7-7,1-3SEC

South Carolina

9-5,0-3SEC

South Carolina

Georgia

Bulldogs Defeat South Carolina in Front of Record 8,376 Fans

October 11, 2024 | Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Volleyball | vs. South Carolina | W, 3-2
Set scores: 25-18, 25-18, 23-25, 23-25, 15-9
Season Record: 7-7, 1-3

Bulldogs Outlast South Carolina in Front of Record 8,376 Fans

ATHENS, Ga. – The University of Georgia volleyball team defeated South Carolina in five sets on Friday evening in front of 8,376 fans at Stegeman Coliseum (25-18, 25-18, 23-25, 23-25, 15-9).

Georgia not only set a program attendance record, the number is the most for an NCAA volleyball match in the state of Georgia, topping the previous mark held by Georgia Tech of 5,303 set last season.

Fast Facts

Sophie Fischer led the offense with 18 kills. She added nine blocks and three digs.
Erykah Lovett finished just behind Fischer with 17 kills and added a team-best four aces. With 10 digs, she picked up her fifth double-double of the season.
Bianna Muoneke also topped the 10-kill mark with 13. She too put up 10 digs for her fourth double-double.
Freshman MK Patten made her NCAA debut Friday after missing the first 13 matches due to a finger injury. Patten tallied five kills, six blocks, and four digs.
Bailey Cox led the defense with 18 digs Friday.
As a team, the Bulldogs put up 18.5 blocks, a new season high. Ceci Gooch recorded a career-best eight blocks.

Key Quotes
Head Coach Tom Black
On the crowd…
"It's nothing like I've ever seen before at Georgia for sure. It was really cool to see. There were so many people here and they were so loud that you were able to physically feel it. That's how you know you have a really good crowd. It was definitely special and something the girls will remember for the rest of their lives."

On what the attendance record of the match means to him…
"It's really cool over the course of the years I've been here to see it come to this. It was definitely a really meaningful day and I'm really grateful not just for the fans for showing up, but all the effort from the athletic department to get to make this happen, and I'm really glad we were able to pull out the win."

#2 Sophie Fischer | MB | Gr.
On the crowd and environment in Stegeman...
"Thank you to everyone who came – the band, all the students, the different sports teams who came, absolutely everyone. It just is such a fun environment, and we appreciate the support so much, so it was really amazing."

#14 Erykah Lovett | OH | Gr.
On winning a five-setter and picking up the first conference win...
"I think we're used to the five-setters. We're well seasoned. We know what it takes. We just had to turn on that gear. We have to learn how to start off strong. We haven't done that lately, so we made a really big emphasis of that after the fourth set. We've got to start off strong. We've got to put them down early."

#3 MK Patten | OPP | Fr.
On returning from an injury…
"It felt amazing to be out there. I was gone for six weeks. I had surgery on my finger that I broke at practice. To come back to this game with 8,000 fans was just incredible. We're so grateful to everyone who showed up and showed out."

Up Next
Georgia hosts Ole Miss on Sunday at Stegeman Coliseum on Sunday. First serve is set for 1 p.m. live on SEC Network. It will be Georgia's annual pink match. The first 500 fans will receive a pink t-shirt.