Pitt
vs. Duke
Volleyball Loses 3-1 to Duke in Buckeye Classic Consolation
9/18/2005 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Sept. 17, 2005
CENTERBURG, Ohio - For the second time in as many days, the Pitt volleyball team was a point or two away from changing the outcome of a match and instead of a 2-0 record, came away with an 0-2 mark at the Ohio State Buckeye Classic.
In the tournament consolation match on Saturday evening at Centerburg High School, Pitt (7-6) dropped a 3-1 decision to Duke (6-2) with two of the four sets going overtime. The Blue Devils opened with a 32-30 win in game one, but the Panthers blasted away in the second game, hitting .483 and winning a 30-21 decision. Despite having three set points in game three, Pitt couldn't hold a 29-26 lead and dropped the set, 33-31, before falling 30-22 in the final game.
Sophomore Diana Andreyko (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) was named to the Buckeye Classic All-Tournament Team after a career-high-tying 23-kill effort against the Blue Devils. Andreyko also had a personal-best 65 attempts in hitting .246, and added 11 digs for a double-double and two blocks.
Freshman middle Jessica Moses (North Olmsted, Ohio/Lutheran West) had perhaps her best match of the season with six kills in 14 errorless attempts for a .429 hitting percentage. She added a service ace, four digs, and a match-high eight blocks at the net (one solo, seven assists). The eight blocks were the most by a Panther thus far in 2005.
Gini Ullery (Tracy, Calif./Tracy) was the only other Panther in double figures in kills with 12 and added three digs and two blocks. Senior libero Megan McGrane (Muncie, Ind./Delta) had a match-high 22 digs to give her 2,030 for her career, one match after becoming the 12th Division I player to reach the 2,000-dig milestone.
The Panthers will open Big East Conference play this weekend with two home matches at Fitzgerald Field House. Pitt plays Villanova on Saturday, Sept. 24 and Rutgers on Sunday, Sept. 25. Both matches are scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.
NOTES: The Panthers were edged in hitting percentage, .251 to .247...Pitt had six service aces on Saturday and three on Friday vs. No. 14 Ohio State for a total of 76 in 13 matches (5.85 avg.) in 2005...in 32 matches last season, the Panthers totaled 98 service aces (3.06 avg.)...the Panthers have now lost back-to-back matches a total of 12 times under head coach Chris Beerman in his five-plus seasons at the helm.
