SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Presbyterian Blue Hose (4-10, Big South: 0-2) battled the USC Upstate Spartans (8-7, Big South: 1-1) before falling in five tightly contested sets, 3-2 (16-25, 25-20, 25-20, 25-27, 15-10) on the road on Friday evening.

Julia Yurkovich paced the Blue Hose with a match-high 18 kills. Elyse Hutchinson chipped in with 13 kills, and Anisa Dorlouis recorded another double-double with 39 assists and 24 digs.
 
SET ONE  – PC 25, USC Upstate 16
The Blue Hose jumped off to an early 1-0 advantage after posting a .267 hitting percentage in the first set. Presbyterian jumped out to an 8-4 lead after a USC Upstate attack error. The score would eventually be knotted at nine. After two straight kills by Yurkovich, the Blue Hose took a lead that they would not relinquish. A couple more kills from Yurkovich down the stretch closed out Presbyterian's set-one victory.
 
SET TWO – USC Upstate 25, Presbyterian 20
Presbyterian scored nine of the first 12 points, taking a 9-3 lead after a kill from Hutchinson. With the Blue Hose leading 10-4, USC Upstate went on a 10-1 run, taking a 14-11 lead. Presbyterian cut USC Upstate's lead to one point, 14-13, after a USC Upstate attack error. The Blue Hose did not regain the lead as USC Upstate evened the match at one set apiece with a 25-20 win.
 
SET THREE – USC Upstate 25, Presbyterian 20 
USC Upstate scored the first four points of the set. Presbyterian scored four straight points, tying the score at four after kills from Courtney Williams and Yurkovich. The Blue Hose would score three of the next four points, taking a 7-5 lead after a USC Upstate attack error.  The set would be tied at 8, 9, 12, and 13. With the set tied at 13, USC Upstate scored two straight points, regaining the lead for good, eventually winning the set, 25-20.
 
SET FOUR – PC 27, USC Upstate 25 
The Blue Hose scored five of the first eight points of the set after consecutive kills from Hutchinson gave PC a 5-3 lead. Presbyterian maintained the lead until USC Upstate scored five straight points after PC was leading 10-7, taking a 12-10 lead. USC Upstate maintained the lead until a Spartans' attack error tied the score at 15. USC Upstate moved back in front with three straight points. Presbyterian battled back, tying the score at 21. USC Upstate moved back in front by two points. Presbyterian scored three straight points to move in front 24-23 after a USC Upstate attack error. Brittney Daphnis and Williams recorded kills during PC's 3-0 scoring run. With the score tied at 25, Presbyterian closed out the fourth set win after a kill from Hutchinson and a service ace from Celimar Hoyos.
 
SET FIVE – USC Upstate 15, Presbyterian 10 
The two teams exchanged points early in the set. With the score tied at 2, USC Upstate scored seven of the next eight points, taking control of the fifth set, 9-3. After back-to-back kills from Yurkovich, Presbyterian cut USC Upstate's lead to 9-6. However, the Blue Hose were not able to get any closer as USC Upstate won the fifth decisive set, 15-10, for the 3-2 win.
 
UP NEXT
Presbyterian travels to North Carolina to play Big South Conference foe UNC Asheville on Saturday, October 4 at 2 p.m.