The Citadel Cruises to Sweep of South Carolina State

Friday, September 4

Charleston, S.C.

6:00 PM

The Citadel

2-3,0-0SoCon

South Carolina State

1-4,0-0MEAC

Team	1	2	3	Final F
South Carolina St.	23	19	21	0
The Citadel	25	25	25	3

The Citadel Cruises to Sweep of South Carolina State

9/4/2026 8:31:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

By: The Citadel Athletics

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Bolstered by a trio of double-digit kill performances from Rachel Reininger (14), Jordyn Sims (11) and Emma Pastusic (10), The Citadel (2-3) defeated South Carolina State (1-4) in straight sets (25-23, 25-19, 25-21) to close out the second day of competition at the Lowcountry Volleyball Championship at McAlister Field House on Friday night.

As a team, the Bulldogs finished with 47 kills and a .275 hitting percentage, including a match-high .520 mark in the second set.

Reininger led The Citadel with 14 kills and 15.5 points while hitting .435. Sims added her 11 kills on a .429 hitting percentage and recorded two block assists, while Luci Lippelgoos finished with eight kills and hit .412. Jess Martin posted 10 digs, eight assists and three service aces, while Mia Watson collected a team-high 11 digs. Pastusic contribued 10 kills plus six digs and one solo block as well.

For South Carolina State, Amani Hawkins paced the Bulldogs with 12 kills on a .375 hitting percentage plus one block. Kenna Harris recorded 11 kills, hit .381 and contributed two blocks. Taelyn Graham tallied seven kills on a .417 hitting percentage and led SC State with five total blocks. Macey McCoy posted 21 assists and five digs.

First Set | 25-23

The host Bulldogs won seven of the first eight rallies, with Martin serving two aces as The Citadel built a 7-1 lead.
South Carolina State worked back within 9-8, but kills from Sims and Lippelgoos helped the Bulldogs regain control and build a 16-11 advantage.
The visiting Bulldogs tied the set at 17-17 before The Citadel answered with three straight points, including kills from Lippelgoos and Reininger, to take a 20-17 lead.
The Citadel reached set point on a Reininger kill before closing the opening sequence on top via a 25-23 margin courtesy of a South Carolina State attack error.

Second Set | 25-19

South Carolina State opened a 5-1 lead before the host Bulldogs won seven of the next eight rallies. Kills from Sims, Lippelgoos and Reininger helped The Citadel move in front, 8-6.
The Citadel extended their advantage to 14-8 and later used kills from Sims and Lippelgoos to push the margin to 20-14.
South Carolina State cut the deficit to 20-17 behind consecutive aces from Carra Pierre-Louis, but Reininger answered with a kill before the Bulldogs closed the set with back-to-back blocks for a 25-19 victory.

Third Set | 25-21

After South Carolina State moved ahead, 8-6, Reininger sparked a four-point response that gave the host Bulldogs a 10-8 lead. Sims followed with consecutive kills to extend the lead out to 12-9.
The visitors tied the set at 13-13, but The Citadel regained a 15-13 advantage and later turned a 17-16 lead into a 23-17 margin. Reininger and Sims recorded kills during the run before Martin added an ace.
South Carolina State scored four straight points to pull within 23-21, but Sims stopped the run with a kill before Lippelgoos finished the match with another to secure the 25-21 win.

Up Next
The Bulldogs host Charleston Southern in the final match of the Lowcountry Volleyball Championship on Saturday, Sept. 5, at 6 p.m. inside McAlister Field House. Meanwhile, College of Charleston squares off with South Carolina State in the early contest on Saturday, first serve slated for 3 p.m.

The Lowcountry Volleyball Championship Schedule

Thursday, Sept. 3
Charleston Southern def. South Carolina State vs. Charleston Southern, 3-0
College of Charleston def. The Citadel, 3-0

Friday, Sept. 4
College of Charleston def. Charleston Southern, 3-0
The Citadel def. South Carolina State, 3-0

Saturday, Sept. 5
College of Charleston vs. South Carolina State — 3 p.m.
Charleston Southern vs. The Citadel — 6 p.m.

Food Drive

The Citadel will partner with the Lowcountry Food Bank during the Lowcountry Volleyball Championship, Sept. 3-5, to help support the fight against hunger in the Charleston community. Fans are encouraged to bring five canned food items to McAlister Field House each day of the tournament to support the food drive.

Postgame with Coach Zelenock 🎙️🏐

Head coach Dave Zelenock joined the broadcast following the Bulldogs' sweep of South Carolina St.#BattleReady pic.twitter.com/V9gWr8VtJZ
— The Citadel Volleyball (@CitadelVB) September 5, 2026

Postgame with Jordyn Sims 🎙️🏐

Jordyn Sims joined the broadcast following the Bulldogs' sweep of South Carolina St. #BattleReady pic.twitter.com/QVDLbkcGyb
— The Citadel Volleyball (@CitadelVB) September 5, 2026