Pitt
21-4 (9-3ACC)
Wake Forest
13-13 (3-9ACC)
Pitt Volleyball Blanks Wake Forest in Three Sets
11/8/2014 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Box Score | Season Stats | Conference Stats
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – The University of Pittsburgh Volleyball team (21-4, 9-3 ACC) blanked Wake Forest (13-13, 3-9 ACC) Saturday evening 25-15, 25-12 and 25-21 at Reynolds Gym to move to 21-4 overall and 9-3 in ACC play.
The Panthers racked up 43 kills in the win to the Demon Deacons 26 to outhit Wake. Senior Kate Yeazel led Pitt in kills with 11 while Casey Durham followed with 8 and Amanda Orchard and Mariah Bell each added 7. Orchard knocked down those seven kills out in her 12 attempts to record a .583 average. Delaney Clesen picked up 13 digs to aid in the Panthers defense.
The first set came easily to Pitt as they picked up a 25-15 win. After getting out to an 8-3 lead, Wake Forest called a timeout to try and slow the Panthers. Pitt had already scored two consecutive points before the time out but the Panthers run came when Pit tacked on eight more straight points bringing the total to 10. Jenna Jacobson was the server during Pitt’s run, serving 10 straight balls for nine of the 10 points. This brought the score to 16-4 and the Panthers lead by 12. Pit didn’t stop there as they extended its lead to 20-7. The Demon Deacons made their way to double digit points but couldn’t catch Pitt, who went on to win it 25-15.
The Panthers picked up another quick win in the second set as they dropped Wake Forest 25-12. The Demon Deacons kept the score close in the beginning of the set as Pitt only led by two points. A Durham kill and two Wake Forest attack errors later, the Panthers took a 9-4 lead forcing a Demon Deacons timeout. Pitt continued to rack up the points, extending its lead to 15-9, calling for another Wake Forest timeout. The Panthers won the second set after recording seven consecutive points including two kills by Bell, a service ace by Orchard and four errors by the Demon Deacons.
Wake Forest posed more of a challenge for Pitt in the final set as the Demon Deacons kept the score close throughout the match set but the Panthers were able to walk away with a 25-21 win. Wake got out to an 11-9 lead before Pitt scored two straight to tie the game at 11. The Demon Deacons called a timeout but it didn’t stop the Panthers as a Lindsey Zitzke service ace and Yeazel kill put the Panthers back up by two. The score was tied four more times through the remainder of the set including 13-13, 15-15, 16-16 and 20-20. To win the match, the Panthers scored five of the final six points including two kills each by Bell and Orchard.
After a weekend on the road, Pitt will return home this weekend to take on Miami and Virginia Tech. The Panthers will welcome the Hurricanes to the Fitzgerald Field House on Nov. 14 at 7 p.m. and then the Hokies on Nov. 16 at 1 p.m.
Keep up with all things Pitt volleyball by visiting PittsburghPanthers.com or following the team on Twitter at @PittVolleyball.
