Pitt
Syracuse
Ullery, Andreyko Lead Volleyball Past Syracuse
10/8/2005 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Oct. 8, 2005
PITTSBURGH - Led by outside hitters Gini Ullery and Diana Andreyko, the Pitt volleyball team swept past visiting Syracuse in a battle of third-place teams in the Big East. The Panthers won 30-24, 30-27, 32-30, for their fourth consecutive victory.
Ullery (Tracy, Calif./Tracy) led all players with 19 kills, hitting .386 for the match with just two errors in 44 swings. She added 16 digs for a double-double and combined with Andreyko (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) for 36 putaways in the match.
Andreyko had three service aces, four assists, five digs and three blocks to go along with her 17 kills as she hit .278 in the sweep. Freshman setter Nicole Taurence (Trenton, Mich./Trenton) kept up her solid play as of late with a match-high 45 assists, five digs and three blocks, while senior libero Megan McGrane (Muncie, Ind./Delta) led all players with 17 digs.
Pitt (11-7, 4-1 Big East) controlled the tempo of the match from the midway point of game one through the end of game three, holding All-Big East honoree Kelly Duan to just eight kills and a .111 hitting percentage. Kristen Conway led the Orange (12-7, 3-2 Big East) with 11 kills and a .346 hitting percentage, while Katie Allen, Duan and Jen Malcom combined for 19 blocks.
The Panthers will be back in action tomorrow at Fitzgerald Field House to take on Marquette at 2 p.m. Pitt will look to improve its standing in the new 15-team Big East. The top six teams will advance to the conference tournament, held this year in Louisville, Ky.
NOTES: The Panthers outhit the Orange, .258 to .171, leading in every statistical category but blocks for the afternoon...Pitt's four-match winning streak is its longest this season and longest since winning eight in a row from October 8-31, 2004...Ullery now has 914 digs in her career, 86 away from becoming the fourth player in Pitt history to record 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs in a career...she already has 1,304 kills in her career, fourth most in Panther annals.
