Oct. 21, 2001
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The University of Kentucky volleyball team fell, 3-0, to the 22nd-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks on Sunday, Oct. 21 at the Volleyball Competition Facility on the USC campus in Columbia, S.C. Kentucky falls to 10-8 with the loss and stands at 3-5 in the Southeastern Conference.
Kentucky was led by junior Kristen Batt, who had 10 kills and hit .389 in the match. Cally Plummer led the way for South Carolina (14-3, 7-3 SEC) , hitting .444 on the match and grabbing 11 kills.
The two teams fought through nine early ties in the first game before the Gamecocks used their serving game to make a 9-2 run. With USC leading 21-14, the Cats managed to grab key points on kills from Batt and senior April Barnhorst cutting into the Gamecock lead. The Cats scored five straight points and held the USC score at 29, but South Carolina grabbed the 30-25 decision.
The Gamecocks had UK rattled to start the second game, taking a 6-2 lead before the Cats clawed back, tying the match at 13. Freshman Sarah Spinner planted a kill and a service ace back-to-back to give UK its first lead of the game. Kentucky extended the margin to as many as four, but South Carolina rallied, tying the game at 21. The teams saw two more stalemates down the stretch as USC won out, 30-27, and took a 2-0 lead into the break.
South Carolina dominated the third game and led by as many as 12 before taking the game, 30-17, and earning the SEC win. UK hit a -.107 hitting percentage in the final game, while USC posted a match-high .409 mark.
Kentucky returns home to play host to Notre Dame on Tuesday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. in Memorial Coliseum.
Game Scores
Game One – USC 30, UK 25
Game Two – USC 30, UK 27
Game Three – USC 30, UK 17
