Despite a strong performance on the road, The University of South Florida volleyball team opened its NC State Invitational in Raleigh, N.C. with a loss.

USF (1-3 overall) dropped a pivotal third set in extra points, and could not recover Friday night, dropping a match to North Carolina State in four sets, 23-25, 25-19, 27-29, 20-25.

The Bulls outplayed their opponent in nearly every statistical category their first road match of the season, but couldn't quite close out the scrappy Wolfpack late in the first or and third sets, allowing NC State to pull out the win. In the loss, USF out-hit NC State .253-.206 and out-blocked them 9-5, but were out-served as the Wolfpack recorded nine aces to USF's six.

Riding the hot arm of sophomore outside hitter Valerie El Houssine, USF pulled out to a 22-19 first-set lead. El Houssine's four kills weren't enough however, as NC State managed to hold off the rest of the Bulls' attacks, using three kills and a pair of big blocks to take five of the next six points and sweeping away USF's opportunity at a 1-0 advantage in the match.

After being out-hit .323-.161 in the first set, the Bulls turned things around in the second. Mixing and matching personnel, USF committed just two hitting errors to hit .333 in the set. The Bulls combined their strong attack with a more aggressive serving attack, posting three aces and forcing NC State's offense out of rhythm. Taking a 21-16 lead and never looking back, USF held the Wolfpack to a .081 hitting percentage to take the second set, 25-19, knotting the match at one heading into the break.

Six different players recorded at least one kill in the second set, as the Bulls established a very balanced attack they would utilize for the rest of the match.

As good as the USF offense looked, it was the Wolfpack who stole the show in the third set. With USF leading 20-17 in the third, NC State battled back twice, fending off a late 24-22 deficit to eventually win the set 29-27, deflating USF's momentum in what ended up being a pivotal point in the match.

USF had three players reach double digits in kills for the first time this season, as El Houssine led the way with 12 while J'beria Davis and Andrea Rodriguez Gomez eached added 10. Seven different Bulls recorded at least one kill. Senior libero Claudia Cabrera continued to look sharp in the back row, racking up 25 digs. El Houssine contributed 15 digs.