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Radford University Athletics

Home Of The RadFord Highlanders RadFord Highlanders
Team
Rob Simmons
3
Winner Radford Rad 6-9,3-1 Big South
2
USC Upstate USCU 6-11,1-3 Big South
Winner
Radford Rad
6-9,3-1 Big South
3
Final
2
USC Upstate USCU
6-11,1-3 Big South
Set Scores
Team 1 2 3 4 5 F
Radford Rad 14 25 19 25 15 (3)
USC Upstate USCU 25 22 25 19 13 (2)

Game Recap: Volleyball |

Incredible Comeback Effort Lifts Highlanders to Road Win Over Spartans

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Radford volleyball program dug deep and put together a huge comeback effort Saturday night on the road for 3-2 a Big South victory over USC Upstate.
 
KEY STATS
  • While Radford only hit .154 total in the match, the team used strong performances in the third and fifth sets combined with holding the Spartans to a sub .200 hitting percentage between sets two and five to gain an advantage.
  • Sierra Moore (15), Sophie Paspal (14), and Olivia Flanagan (13) led the offense effort in kills.
  • Moore's 15 kills were the most among all players in the match.
  • Rylee Sloss (16 assists and 12 digs) and Julia Slivka (15 assists and 10 digs) each earned double-doubles.
 
PLAY BY PLAY
The first set of Saturday's match was a rough start for the Highlanders as the Spartans quickly jumped ahead to take a commanding 25-14 first set win. The Spartans hit .483 in the opening set, but Radford would quickly put that in the rear-view mirror not allowing USC Upstate to hit better than .200 for the remainder of the match.
 
In set two, Radford got the bounce back they needed. Using an early run to build a lead, Radford got multiple runs thanks to aces from Sara Johnson and kills from Paspal and Moore to pace the point total ahead of the Spartans. Up 21-19, Radford would keep pace to a winning finish thanks to a 4-3 run to take the second set 25-23.
 
A long USC Upstate run to start the third set seemed to sink the Highlanders into an insurmountable hole down 10-3. In line with the theme of the night, Radford battled back. The Highlanders rallied back out of a timeout for a 6-1 run to quickly tighten the set back up.
 
After tying things at 15-all off a kill from Moore, Radford took a 16-15 lead and added on more thanks to kills from Paspal. USC Upstate was forced to call a timeout and tides shifted back in the Spartans favor from there. Radford couldn't hang on and dropped the third set 25-19 despite a valiant comeback effort.
 
With their backs to the wall, Radford would look to bounce back once again to keep the match alive. A 5-0 run early in the fourth set showed signs of the effort coming. Radford's defense forced the Spartans into multiple errors while Moore, Paspal and Flanagan continued their dominant nights. Up 22-19, the Highlanders ended the fourth set with a 3-0 run to force the winner-takes-all fifth set.
 
While things started in a back-and-forth manner, USC Upstate was the first to take a commanding lead. The Spartans rallied to go up 12-6, an almost insurmountable deficit to come out of. It wasn't enough to keep the Highlanders at bay, though, as one last comeback effort sparked.
 
Kills by Paspal and Flanagan as well as multiple errors by the Spartans allowed Radford to crawl out of the hole and rip off a 6-0 run to tie the set at 12-all. USC Upstate would end that run to briefly pull ahead 13-12, but three straight points which included two kills and a block by Flanagan sealed the deal in the Highlanders favor who came back against all odds for the 15-13 fifth set win and 3-2 match victory.
 
NOTABLES
  • Radford has gone to five sets four times this season but finally got over the hump tonight for their first five-set win of the season.
  • Radford and USC Upstate have gone five sets twice in Big South action over the years, both times in Spartanburg and both times resulting in wins for Radford.
 
AROUND THE BIG SOUTH
  • Winthrop earned a clean weekend with another 3-0 sweep over Charleston Southern.
  • Prior to Radford and USC Upstate's match, High Point defeated UNC Asheville 3-1.
  • Presbyterian earned their first conference win in 3-0 fashion over Gardner-Webb.
 
UP NEXT
The Highlanders will remain on the road for their next pair of upcoming Big South battles. Radford returns to action at Winthrop on Friday, October 18th and will also visit Gardner-Webb on Saturday, October 19th.

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