ORANGEBURG, S.C. – Coming back from a 1-0 deficit, The Citadel volleyball hit a season best .298 from the field, defeating South Carolina State in four set 23-25, 25-8, 25-16 and 25-21 on Thursday night.

The Bulldogs (7-16, 0-6 SoCon) ended a six-match losing streak in the victory, led by double-digit kills by three players. Filling in for leading hitter Moriah Smith, middle blocker Sumerlyn Carruthers entered the starting lineup and paced the team with 13 kills. Right side hitter Megan Sowell recorded 11 kills and middle hitter Sarah Dobrich posted 10 with a .471 hitting percentage.

"We got off to a slow start offensively, but picked it up in the last three sets," said head coach Craig Mosqueda. "Sumerlyn came in and did a great job and Dominique (Williams) and Sarah were unstoppable in the middle."

The Bulldogs finished with six team blocks, led by Dobrich's one solo and four block assists. Outside hitter Carla Bruce added a season-high four block assists.

In the first set, the Bulldogs finished with seven attack errors and a .125 hitting percentage, but still had an opportunity to win the set late. Down 23-20, The Citadel rallied to tie the set at 23 apiece after a kill by Bruce. South Carolina State went on to claim the set, however, after back-to-back Bulldog errors.

The Bulldogs rebounded with a dominant second set, hitting .500 from the floor and holding the host Bulldogs to -.250 to take the set 25-8. Dobrich finished with four kills in the set as the Bulldogs took leads of 7-1 and 20-4 before cruising to the 25-8 victory.

The offense continue the impressive hitting in the third set, finishing with 12 kills to two errors and a .417 hitting percentage. Sowell posted five kills in the set for The Citadel. Despite seven service aces, the Bulldogs still claimed an easy 25-16 victory to move ahead 2-1.

Five players finished with at least two kills in the final set for the Bulldogs, led by four from both Carruthers and Sowell. With a 22-21 lead late, the Bulldogs took the final three points, led by two kills by Carruthers to claim the set 25-21 and take the match 3-1.

Defensively, the Bulldogs held South Carolina State to a .082 hitting percentage. Setter Priscilla Irizarry recorded 24 assists to lead the team, followed by Logan Smith with 17. Libero Samantha Espy posted 12 digs, moving into second place in program history with 1,252 in her career.

The Bulldogs return to Southern Conference play on Sunday, hosting Furman at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs visited Furman the previous Sunday, falling in four sets. Live stats will be available for the match.

For more information on The Citadel volleyball follow @CitadelVB or visit CitadelSports.com.