CHARLESTON, S.C. – Charleston Southern fell to USC Upstate on Saturday afternoon by a final score of 3-1.
 
The Buccaneers were able to take the first set by a final score of 25-23. Charleston Southern was able to piece together a pair of 5-0 scoring runs during the frame to surge ahead and were able to fend off the Spartans' late comeback attempt.
 
The visitors were able to take the second by a decisive 25-9 scoreline and followed it with a 25-17 victory in the third. The Bucs took the first point of the third, but the visitors took the next seven to gain a large advantage early.
 
During the fourth, Charleston Southern tallied the first four, but the Spartans were able to tie it at seven apiece. The teams then traded 9-0 scoring stretches with Upstate having the first to put the score at 19-9 with the Bucs' run coming soon after to put the score at 20-19. The Spartans were able to come away with the victory in it, tallying the next five points to claim it at 25-19.
 
Jyriah Morgan and Emily Struckmeyer lead the team in kills as they each picked up eight on the night. Struckmeyer's total set a season-high for her in the category. Giada Pais-Marden had six kills and Skylar Yates finished with five. Ilaria Durante leads the team in assists with 20. Angelika Rusin had three service aces on the night for the game's best.
 
Pais-Marden, Morgan and Struckmeyer each finished with four total blocks. Rusin and Yates were the leaders in digs for the team with each picking up 16 in the afternoon. Durante was next as she had 15.
 
The Buccaneers will finish off their 2023 season with a trio of road matches. It starts next weekend with them facing High Point on Friday and Radford on Saturday. The season ends on Friday, November 10 when the team will make the trip to Clinton, S.C. to play Presbyterian.