Pitt
(18-3, 6-2ACC)
Louisville
(13-8, 5-4ACC)
Pitt Volleyball Knocks Off Louisville in Four
10/26/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Box Score | Season Stats | Conference Stats
PITTSBURGH -Pitt volleyball bounced back after its five set loss to No. 4 Florida State this past Friday to beat ACC foe Louisville in four sets at the Fitzgerald Field House Sunday afternoon. The Panthers started off by winning the first two sets 25-15 and 25-17 before dropping the third set 28-26. Trailing early in the fourth set, Pitt came back to win 29-27 and take the match, 3-1.
The Panthers continued their offensive success, as they had four players record double-digit kills for the second straight game and tallied 150 total aces for a season high. Kate Yeazel led Pitt with 17 kills, Maria Genitsaridi followed with 13 and both Jessica Wynn and Amanda Orchard notched 10. Yeazel, Genitsaridi and Wynn all tallied 10 or more kills last game as well. Orchard finished the game with a .455 hitting percentage while Lindsey Zitzke and Jenna Jacobson combined for 54 assists. Jessica Wynn [10 kills, 12 digs] and Genitsaridi [12 kills, 15 digs] both picked up double-doubles. Zitzke also notched five aces while Genitsaridi added four and Delaney Clesen three.
The first set started with Louisville taking a 3-1 lead over Pitt but it didn't last long as the score became tied 5-5. In back and forth points, the two teams exchanged leads until the score became tied 9-9. At that point, the Panthers scored four straight points, including kills by Genitsaridi and Yeazel, to take a 14-9 lead and force a Louisville timeout. Pitt came back from the timeout to score its fifth straight point on an attack error by the Cardinals. After two points scored by Louisville, the Panthers went on another run, this time scoring eight consecutive points to bring the score to 23-11. Three of the eight points were aces by Genitsaridi. While Louisville attempted to make a comeback, scoring four straight points, Pitt couldn't be stopped and went on to pick up a first set 25-15 win thanks to a kill from Yeazel.
While the first set was close early on, the Panthers gave themselves a bit of wiggle room in the second. Pitt's first three points came from kills by Yeazel and Potts, and an ace by Lindsey Zitzke. The closest Louisville came to being the front-runner was when the score was 4-3 early on, but the Panthers did not relinquish that lead at all. Pitt took a 10-3 lead after scoring six straight points. The Cardinals came back within two of the Panthers, making the score 10-8, but Pitt continued to increase their number on the scoreboard. To try and slow the Panthers down, Louisville called a timeout when Pitt grabbed a 14-9 lead. Their attempt was unsuccessful as the Panthers reached the twenties while leading by nine points towards the end of the set. Jessica Wynn and Maria Genitsaridi picked up Pitts final two points to give the Panthers a 25-17 win.
After gaining a 2-0 overall lead over the Cardinals, Pitt dropped the third set 26-28 in extra points play. This set began more like the first, with a close beginning score and back and forth points. The two teams were tied up six times before either team reached 10 points. Pitt lead in most of the early points that weren't ties up until the momentum changed directions and Louisville took a 14-13 lead. A Panthers timeout didn't stop the Cardinals from making additions as the score became 19-16 late in the set. Pitt didn't give up, coming back to tie the game at 19-19. Four lead changes occurred between the Panthers and Louisville in the final points of the game but Pitt gave up two points in the end to drop the set.
Following on the path of set three, an exhilarating fourth set occurred when extra points came into the picture once again. The Cardinals took control early on in the fourth while leading 9-6. Pitt, unable to catch them right away, took a timeout after they extend that lead to 12-8 and then 15-10. The Panthers worked their way back to only being down 14-16 which forced a Louisville take a short break. Out of the timeout, the Cardinals scored three straight to regain a five point 19-14 lead. While it looked like Louisville had the advantage, Pitt never stopped pushing back as they tied the game at 24. The set could have gone either way as each team had three set points but with the score tied at 27, Pitt was able to notch its second-to-last point on an attack error by the Cardinals before Yeazel threw down her final kill off of a Clesen set. The Panthers won the set four 29-27 and the match 3-1.
Pitt will continue play on Oct. 31 when they head to Blacksburg to take on the Hokies of Virginia Tech in a 7 p.m. evening match. The Panthers will return home that following Sunday to host Syracuse at 1 p.m. on Nov. 2.
Keep up with all things Pitt volleyball by checking out PittsburghPanthers.com or following the team on Twitter at @PittVolleyball.
