Maria Clara Andrade set a new career-high of 26 kills in the University of South Florida volleyball team's (16-10, 10-5 American) 3-1 win over the East Carolina Pirates (18-8, 9-6 American in front a rowdy crowd in The Corral on Thursday night.
The Bulls won with scores of 25-22, 25-22, 15-25, 25-20.
Andrade complimented her career-high of 26 kills with three service aces, two block assists, and a .353 hitting percentage. Buse Hazan followed Andrade with 12 kills for her 19th double-digit kill performance. She also had the only block solo of the night for South Florida. True freshman Miya Thomas set a season-high of 22 digs.
South Florida fell behind early, with ECU taking a 5-1 lead. Caroline Dykes started an 8-2 run that gave the Bulls a 9-7 lead. South Florida extended its lead late in the set to 23-20. Andrade's seventh kill of the match gave the Bulls a one-set lead.
The Bulls and Pirates traded points until they were tied at seven. South Florida found their momentum and went on a 9-2 run to take a 14-8 lead. The Pirates answered with a run of their own to bring the set within one. The Bulls closed out the second set 25-22, the same score as the first.
The Pirates came out hot in the third set and won with a score of 25-15.
With The American East lead in their sight, the Bulls came out refocused in the final set to quickly take an 11-6 lead. The Pirates put some pressure and closed the Bull's lead to only two points after a 3-0 run. Both teams traded points late in the set but two points from South Florida sealed the win and the top spot in the East Division.