JACKSONVILLE – Clarke Adams and Morgan McClure each posted 12-kill performances in Friday's five-set upset of New Mexico State. That massive triumph over the fifth-place Aggies serves as a trademark win for first-year head coach Derek Schroeder in front of a big crowd at Pete Mathews Coliseum. 
 
"I'm just happy for them," head coach Derek Schroeder said. "We used the analogy of chopping down a tree, one chop at a time, and we got lucky enough that the tree fell at 17-15 for us in the fifth set."
 
The two teams played to a tight first set in Jacksonville. Jax State (5-14, 3-6) played tit-for-tat with New Mexico State (13-9, 6-5) early on before a 5-0 spurt down the stretch was all the visitors needed to claim a 25-23 win. The Gamecocks responded in kind in the second with a 25-23 victory the following interval as they claimed the final four points. 
 
NMSU secured a bit of separation in the third. A 6-1 start had them in good positioning and, despite a strong comeback attempt by the Red-and-White, they were able to hold off the Gamecocks in a 25-20 difference. The mirrored scores carried over into set four as Jacksonville State utilized a .313 hitting percentage in the frame to grab the momentum and a rowdy home crowd cheered them on to a five-point triumph, forcing a decisive fifth set. 
 
New Mexico State led 8-6 as the two sides swapped benches in the fifth, but quickly Jax State turned around their fortunes with solid passing and strong serving. The Aggies held match points at 14-13 and 15-14 but the Gamecocks weathered the storm, battling to tie it at 15 on an attack error. An ace from Brooklyn Schiffli set up a Jacksonville State match point and an attack from NMSU's Maggie Lightheart landed out of bounds to end the thrilling bout. 
 
"The win doesn't surprise me, but it surprises me that it happened today," Schroeder said. "I knew a win like this was going to happen for us at some point because we do the dirty things so well. Things like back row defense, playing hard, and playing fast are where we thrive. I figured we'd get one of those matches this year."
 
Adams had 12 kills, six digs, and two assists in the win while McClure finished with 12 kills on a .435 clip, five blocks, and one dig. Freshman Hana Aiana added nine kills and three blocks and Ellie Garrett had a match-high 35 assists. Three Gamecocks had double-digit digs in the win: Schiffli (17), Garrett (11), and Gracie Danziger (10). 
 
"Morgan worked her butt off," Schroeder said. "Every time she leaks towards playing middle the way (assistant coach Tim Ebbecke) and I want her to, she produces. Hopefully we can keep her on that track moving forward because she can be a heck of a volleyball player."
 
Jax State was out-hit .217 to .153 by NMSU. The Aggies ended up with more kills (62 to 49), assists (56 to 44), and digs (68-64). Jacksonville State had the same amount of blocks as New Mexico State (8) and finished with seven aces to NMSU's six. Furthermore, the visitors committed 27 attack errors, 18 service errors, and six ball-handling errors. 
 
Jacksonville State finishes up its weekend slate versus New Mexico State on Saturday afternoon. First serve is set for 1 p.m. at Pete Mathews Coliseum and admission is free. 
 
"It'll be a tough one for both coaches to make adjustments for," Schroeder said. "He has a lot of players on that team that can do a lot of different things, so I'm sure he comes at us with a different lineup. What adjustments can we make where we make them just uncomfortable enough where we have a chance?"
 
The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+. Links to watch or follow along with live stats will be provided at JaxStateSports.com. In addition, score updates will be posted on Jax State Volleyball's X account (@JaxStateVB).  
 
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their X (@JaxStateVB), Instagram (@JaxStateVB), and Facebook (Jacksonville State Volleyball) accounts.