COLUMBIA, S.C. – An electric offensive performance carried South Carolina (11-16, 5-13 SEC) to a three-set sweep of eighth-ranked Tennessee (24-4, 15-3 SEC) on Saturday afternoon. The Gamecocks hit .488 as a team, the highest of an SEC team during conference play this fall, to overpower the Volunteers’ top-ranked attack. Sophomore Alayna Johnson led the way with a career-high 17 kills, hitting .464 along the way.
1st SET: It was pedal to the floor for both teams right away in a frenzied first set, with the Gamecocks coming out on top in a 25-23 score. The two offenses combined for 61 total attacks and each side finished with 18 kills while the two defenses combined for just 16 total digs. There were 14 ties and three lead changes, with Tennessee using a 7-2 run to lead at the first timeout of the match at 15-12. Coming out of the break, South Carolina started working its way back behind kills from Kiune Fletcher and Alayna Johnson, getting the Vols to call for time after tying the score at 20. The unrelenting Gamecock attack finally broke through and the defense came up with key stops late, Johnson’s fifth kill of the set gave the team set point at 24-23 and she would then team up with Oby Anadi for the lone block by either team in the set to clinch the 1-0 advantage.
2nd SET: While the offense for South Carolina could not match its .630 hitting percentage from the opener, it was still red-hot in the second and overcame an error-prone game behind the service line to win 26-24. The Gamecocks committed six service errors behind the line, but were able to side-out at almost 80 percent to keep Tennessee from capitalizing on the mistakes. Johnson had her best set of the day, recording eight kills on just 12 swings to lead an offense that put up 18 more kills and hit .452. The Gamecocks were in control for almost the entire set, never trailing after Tennessee scored the first point. After leading by as many as five points, Carolina saw the lead evaporate down the stretch as the visitors ultimately tied the score at 22. The defense got the team the win in the end again, as an Oby Anadi kill set up set point at 25-24 and she would team with Kiune Fletcher for the clinching block right after.
3rd SET: After locking in the wins for sets one and two, South Carolina’s defense had its best effort to clinch the sweep in the third. The team had four blocks and out-dug Tennessee 17-7, helping hold the Vols to a .229 hitting percentage in a 25-22 win. The…