Oct. 28, 2011
LEXINGTON, Ky. – For the fourth time in seven seasons the Kentucky volleyball team has earned 20 or more victories following a 3-0 (25-17, 25-17, 25-20) sweep of visiting South Carolina on Friday night in Memorial Coliseum. Sophomore defensive specialist Jessi Greenberg totaled a career-high 17 digs in the match to lead the way.
With the victory, Kentucky improves to 20-4 on the season and 11-2 in Southeastern Conference action. South Carolina falls to 11-11 and 2-10 in league play. UK improves to 6-0 at home during conference action.
Kentucky will next face No. 13 Florida in Memorial Coliseum on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET. The match will air live on CWKYT and Fox Sports South with Dave Baker and Kathy DeBoer on the call.
There will be a Halloween costume contest and free candy for kids eighth grade and younger. Fans can also earn free admission with a ticket stub from Saturday’s football game vs. Mississippi State.
Greenberg led the defensive charge with an average of 5.7 scoops per stanza. Junior
Stephanie Klefot added 18 to the Wildcat cause.
Junior Ashley Frazier paced the offense with 14 kills and has now charted 10 or more hammers in a match in 11 of 13 conference matches. Freshman Lauren O’Conner was next with eight. Sophomore Whitney Billings and senior Gretchen Giesler both added seven kills to a UK squad that notched 50 for the match and used a .304 hitting clip.
Reigning SEC Player of the Week, Christine Hartmann, dished out 38 assists and added three kills and eight digs to the victory.
“I thought our offense played well for most of the night,” UK coach Craig Skinner said. “We killed the ball well and we made smart choices. Our serving was exceptional tonight constantly getting South Carolina out of rotation.”
Frazier and Hartmann both notched a pair of service aces as the Wildcats added seven to their offensive firepower.
Senior Becky Pavan captured the first point of the match with a kill to begin the scoring in the first frame. South Carolina tied the score at three, but a kill from Frazier gave the Wildcats a 4-3 advantage it would never relinquish. UK earned its largest lead at five with a 16-11 edge following back-to-back kills from senior Ann Armes and Frazier. Pavan ended the stanza in the same fashion she began it with striking for a kill to give UK a 25-17 opening set win.
The Wildcats totaled 18 kills on an impressive .378 hitting clip to start the match. Frazier, Armes and Pavan all had four kills in the set.
Kentucky earned a 25-17 second set win to take a 2-0 edge into the locker room. Frazier led the offense with five kills as UK turned in 15 kills on .286 hitting. South Carolina managed 12 kills on a .178 clip.
Kentucky quickly took a 4-0 lead and never dropped its advantage. O’Conner began the scoring with a kill and then teamed with Pavan for a rejection. The Wildcats stretched their lead to seven at 14-7 with a kill from Giesler. A Pavan and Billings block capped the set in favor of the home team.
The third frame featured nine tied scores and four lead exchanges with UK eventually prevailing by a 25-20 margin. Frazier once again led the offense with five more kills as the Blue and White charted 17 in the set. Klefot had 10 digs in the frame to pace the defensive effort.
Hartmann’s kill followed a service error by the Gamecocks to give UK an early 2-0 lead. The visitors fought back and earned its first lead of the match at 4-3. Kentucky then took a lead on a kill from Frazier at 6-5 and would maintain an advantage until a tie score came at 10. The final tie came at 18 before Giesler and Frazier posted consecutive kills as the home team pulled away. UK scored six of the final eight points to capture the win.
Kentucky’s Memorial Coliseum will play host to the NCAA Regionals Dec. 9-10. UK is one of four sites selected for Sweet 16 and Elite Eight matchups with one team advancing to the Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, from the Lexington Region. Opening night matches are scheduled for 5 and 7 p.m. ET. Saturday’s final is set for a 4:30 p.m. ET first serve.
Tickets are now on sale through the UK Ticket Office. All-Session Tickets are reserved for all ages at $14. General Admission tickets for adults are priced at $12 and students or seniors’ general admission is slated for $8.
Single session tickets are priced at $8 for reserved for all ages. General admission for adults is priced at $7, with students and seniors priced at $5. Youth single session tickets are $4.
For tickets or more information feel free to call, 1-800-928-CATS.
Visit UKathletics.com for the most up-to-date information on the UK volleyball team and all of Kentucky’s 22 teams.
