Clemson Volleyball Falls to South Carolina 3-0 Tuesday Night

Sept. 7, 2004

Columbia, S.C.-South Carolina improved to 3-1 on the season after defeating Clemson 3-0 (30-24, 30-22, 30-23) in volleyball action from the Colonial Center in Columbia Tuesday evening. With the loss, Clemson fell to 4-2 on the season. A record crowd of 1,965 fans were on hand to witness the Gamecocks’ victory.

The Tigers were led offensively by freshman Meghan Steiner, who hit .375 for the match. Lauren Ford hit .360 to lead the Gamecock offense. South Carolina had 11 service aces over the course of the match.

“I don’t feel like we competed,” Clemson Head Coach Jolene Jordan Hoover said. “South Carolina played well tonight. They ran a nice offense. We didn’t handle the ball well or serve receive well, and that took us out of our offense. We’ve got the talent, but we’ve got some things we need to work on.”

The first game featured 13 lead changes between the two teams. With Clemson leading 21-20, the Gamecocks scored 10 of the next 13 points to claim the first game. Shonda Cole and Lynae Vanden Hull had four kills each for South Carolina in game one, while Finn had four and Ross three for the Tigers. The Gamecocks hit .359 as a team during the first game.

Clemson got off to a 9-3 lead in the second game, only to see South Carolina answer with six straight to tie the game at 9-9. After several lead changes, the Gamecocks pulled away for the 30-22 win in game two.

South Carolina had six service aces during the third and final game of the match. The Gamecocks led 20-9 at one point in the deciding game, before winning by the final margin of 30-23.

Clemson next plays host to the annual Big Orange Bash this coming weekend at home. Teams competing in the event will be Central Michigan, Coastal Carolina, and Louisiana-Lafayette. Four matches are scheduled for Friday, with the final two on Saturday.