Pictured: Sophomore Ashlee Hodgskin (Photo Credit: Alex Hernandez)

BOX SCORE (PDF) / CUMULATIVE STATISTICS (PDF)

COLUMBIA, S.C. (August 30, 2013) – The FIU volleyball team dropped a 3-0 (25-12, 25-22, 25-14) decision to South Carolina at the Gamecock Invitational on Friday night. With the loss, the Panthers fall to 0-2 on the young season while the Gamecocks improve to 2-0.

Redshirt junior Ksenia Sukhareva registered team-highs of seven kills and one service ace, while senior Kimberly Smith and junior Silvia Carli chipped in with five kills apiece. Sophomore Ashlee Hodgskin posted 20 assists for a squad-best, also notching one service ace.

On the defensive side of the net, sophomore Lucia Castro notched a team-best eight digs, while senior Jessica Mendoza and junior Carolyn Fouts each added six digs. FIU was out-blocked by a 6-2 margin for the match, as Carli and junior Martyna Gluchowicz recorded one block assist each for the Panthers.

Set one saw USC run out to an 18-9 advantage and never look back, as the Gamecocks went on for a 25-12 set victory, taking a 1-0 match lead.

FIU came out strong in the second stanza as the two squads battled to a 21-21 tie. Two-straight USC kills ensued to give the Gamecocks a 23-21 advantage, but the Panthers bounced back on a kill from senior Kimberly Smith, putting the score at 23-22. USC retaliated with a score of its own to bring up set-point, and following an FIU timeout, the Gamecocks tallied another kill to come away with a 25-22 set win.

With a 2-0 match lead, USC jumped out to an 18-13 lead before a kill from redshirt junior Ksenia Sukhareva made it 18-14. The Gamecocks would then rattle off five-straight points to put the score at 23-14, forcing an FIU timeout. Out of the break, a pair of Panther errors gave USC a 25-14 set win and a 3-0 match victory.

FIU wraps up action at the Gamecock Invitational on Saturday morning at 11 a.m. when the Panthers take on South Carolina State. Live stats are available HERE, and fans can also follow @FIUVolleyball on Twitter for in-match updates.

Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUVolleyball) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUVolleyball) for all the latest FIU volleyball news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics). The official FIU Athletics hashtag for the 2013-14 athletics year is #PantherNation.

About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including U.S. Century Bank Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor¹s, master¹s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida¹s anchor institutions, FIU is Worlds Ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded 200,000 degrees and enrolls 50,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/

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