TAMPA, September 29, 2023 – The University of South Florida volleyball team (9-6, 3-1 AAC) got back in the win column on Friday night with a 3-0 sweep over the University of Alabama-Birmingham Blazers (2-14, 0-4 AAC) inside the Yuengling Center.
 
The Bulls defeated the Blazers with scores of 25-20, 25-21, 25-19.
 
Buse Hazan (Istanbul, Turkey) led the match with 16 kills and two aces. Ragan Kinard, returning from a one-month injury, finished the match with a .667 hitting percentage. Kinard and Marta Cvitkovic (Rejika, Croatia) led the team with three blocks.
 
South Florida battled back from an early 5-2 deficit to tie the set at 10. From there, both squads traded points. The Bulls closed out the opening set with a 5-1 run.
 
The Green and Gold carried the momentum into the second set, taking seven straight points for an 8-3 lead. The Blazers closed the gap, but the Bulls sealed the two-set lead with a kill from Hazan.
 
The Bulls cruised through the final set, holding the Blazers to a -.154 hitting percentage. South Florida finished the final set with a .360 hitting percentage, the Bulls gathering a 47-23 kills advantage. Caroline Dykes dished out 38 assists adding six digs, second to freshman Miya Thomas' seven.
 
NOTABLES

• The Bulls held the Blazers to a .063 hitting percentage in the match.
• Maria Clara Andrade (Sao Paulo, Brazil) and Hazan were the only players with double-digit kills. Tizi Puljiz almost was a third, going for nine kills with just one error (.571).
• Jolene Shepardson is three wins away from 150 as a head coach.

 
UP NEXT
South Florida will close out their weekend tomorrow at 2 p.m. with the final match against UAB.
 
About USF Volleyball
Head coach Jolene Shepardson enters her fourth season at the helm of her alma mater in 2023. Named head coach on Jan. 8, 2020, Shepardson led the Bulls' program to its last conference championship and NCAA tournament appearance as a student-athlete in 2002. USF made its last postseason appearance in 2018, posting 20 wins and appearing in the NIVC. USF Volleyball has made seven NCAA Tournament appearances and won 12 conference titles since its inception in 1972. The Bulls play in The Corral (1,000), adjacent to the Yuengling Center on the USF campus.
 
Be sure to follow USF women's volleyball on social media (Twitter/Instagram/Facebook) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.