COLUMBIA, S.C. – Tennessee volleyball dropped a three-set match (25-12, 29-27, 25-23) against the South Carolina Gamecocks on Sunday afternoon.
The Lady Vols (11-9, 4-6 SEC) struggled with self-inflicted mistakes, recording 24 attacking errors and 13 service errors to keep the prevent the Big Orange from getting any momentum in the match. Tennessee finished with 38 kills on .131 hitting, 39 digs, 36 assists, seven blocks and one ace. The difference in the contest for the Gamecocks (13-7, 4-6 SEC) was 10 blocks, five aces and .211 hitting.
Graduate student outside hitter Nina Cajic led the offense with 10 kills to go along with five digs, one ace and one block. Coming off the bench for UT, both junior right side Ajack Malual and redshirt junior middle blocker Klaudia Pawlik each tallied seven kills. Pawlik added a team-high four blocks and two digs.
Redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr had another all-around performance, finishing with 27 assists, nine digs, five kills and two blocks. Junior outside hitter Hayden Kubik posted eight digs, five kills and a block, while sophomore libero Katie Barrier added nine digs and one assist.
The Gamecocks gained the early momentum in the contest, using a 13-2 run to finish and win the first set. South Carolina out hit the Big Orange .355 to -.032 in the frame. The second stanza was a battle, but Tennessee came up short after having nine attacking and seven serving errors. The Gamecocks completed the sweep by taking the third set.
Up next, UT returns to Rocky Top next week to begin a five-match homestand. The Lady Vols host LSU on Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET with the contest being streamed on SEC Network+. Tennessee then takes on Texas A&M on Sunday afternoon for a 1 p.m. match that will be aired nationally on ESPN.
The Lady Vols (11-9, 4-6 SEC) struggled with self-inflicted mistakes, recording 24 attacking errors and 13 service errors to keep the prevent the Big Orange from getting any momentum in the match. Tennessee finished with 38 kills on .131 hitting, 39 digs, 36 assists, seven blocks and one ace. The difference in the contest for the Gamecocks (13-7, 4-6 SEC) was 10 blocks, five aces and .211 hitting.
Graduate student outside hitter Nina Cajic led the offense with 10 kills to go along with five digs, one ace and one block. Coming off the bench for UT, both junior right side Ajack Malual and redshirt junior middle blocker Klaudia Pawlik each tallied seven kills. Pawlik added a team-high four blocks and two digs.
Redshirt sophomore setter Caroline Kerr had another all-around performance, finishing with 27 assists, nine digs, five kills and two blocks. Junior outside hitter Hayden Kubik posted eight digs, five kills and a block, while sophomore libero Katie Barrier added nine digs and one assist.
The Gamecocks gained the early momentum in the contest, using a 13-2 run to finish and win the first set. South Carolina out hit the Big Orange .355 to -.032 in the frame. The second stanza was a battle, but Tennessee came up short after having nine attacking and seven serving errors. The Gamecocks completed the sweep by taking the third set.
Up next, UT returns to Rocky Top next week to begin a five-match homestand. The Lady Vols host LSU on Friday at 6:30 p.m. ET with the contest being streamed on SEC Network+. Tennessee then takes on Texas A&M on Sunday afternoon for a 1 p.m. match that will be aired nationally on ESPN.
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