No. 2 Pitt Makes Weekend Trip To Face Georgia Tech, Clemson

PITTSBURGH - No. 2 Pitt, now 17-1 overall and 7-1 in ACC play, hits the road to face Georgia Tech Friday at 7:00 p.m. before traveling to South Carolina to face Clemson Sunday at 1:00 p.m.

Georgia Tech is 13-5 on the season and 5-2 in ACC play and receiving votes in the latest AVCA poll. The Yellow Jackets are 8-0 at home this year and their last loss came against Pitt a year ago, on Nov. 29. Clemson is 8-12 on the season and 2-6 in ACC play. The Tigers have won two straight entering the weekend and all eight of their wins have come at home (8-6 at home overall).

The NCAA selection committee announced its mid-year top 16 earlier this week and Pitt was ranked No. 2. The Panthers are No. 1 in the country in the RPI, a key metric for determining seeding in the NCAA Tournament.

BRING 'EM BACK

On Sept. 26, Olivia Babcock and Blaire Bayless announced that they will return to Pitt for a fifth season in 2027, due to new NCAA rules enacted over the summer.
Babcock and Bayless made the announcement during a timeout at Pitt football's Homecoming victory over Bucknell in Acrisure Stadium.
The duo has led Pitt to three straight trips to the Final Four with an overall record of 110-13. Babcock and Bayless have lost just two home matches in four seasons at Pitt.

WE'RE #1

The NCAA releases the official RPI rankings each Monday. For the second straight week, Pitt is No. 1 in the country.
Just behind Pitt is Nebraska, Florida, Kentucky and Wisconsin. Louisville, Oregon, SMU, Vanderbilt and UCLA round out the top 10.

FISHING FOR WINS

Pitt Head Coach Dan Fisher has spent more than a decade reeling in wins. He is the winningest active coach, by winning percentage, in NCAA Division I with a minimum of five years experience. His .852 win percentage ranks just ahead of Nebraska's Dani Busboom Kelly (.848).
Fisher, in fact, is fourth among all coaches in NCAA Division I history (minimum five years) in winning percentage.

NO STARCK CONTRAST

There's nothing stark about the consistency Izzy Starck has brought to Pitt's lineup. The junior setter ranks No. 8 in the country in assists per set and she has twice earned ACC Setter of the Week honors this year.
The 2024 AVCA Freshman of the Year and a national champion at Penn State, Starck has averaged 10.86 assists per set during her career, which ranks third among active players. She is averaging 10.83 assists per set in her first year with the Panthers.
Starck is guiding an offense that is second in the nation with a .326 attack percentage. Pitt has hit at least .300 in 12-of-18 matches this year and has hit at least .400 three times. Pitt has hit .367 or better in three consecutive matches.

DIG THIS PROGRESS

Freshman Trinity Thompson entered Pitt as a highly touted setter, breaking the state of Nevada's all-time assist record. So a transition to libero was expected to take some time. But Thompson's growth has come quickly.
Through the first 11 matches of the season, Thompson recorded double-digit digs just one time, but she's hit 11+ three times in the last seven matches, including a career-best 14 against Stanford.
Thompson is averaging 2.95 digs per set over the past seven matches after averaging just 1.64 over the first 11 contests.

HARD TO BEAT

Since the start of the 2021 season, nobody in NCAA Division I women's volleyball has won more than Pitt.
Pitt and Nebraska enter the weekend atop the NCAA volleyball world for wins since 2021 with 170 each. Pitt is 170-21 (.890) over that span, while Nebraska is 170-20 (.895). The Panthers are also a remarkable 92-10 (.902) in conference play during that span.
Louisville is third in the country during that stretch with 164 wins, a full six victories behind Pitt and Nebraska.
In non-conference play, Pitt has gone undefeated three times in the last six years, doing so in 2021 (11-0) and 2024 (10-0) prior to another unbeaten (10-0) non-conference slate this year.

STILL GETTING BETTER?

How does the best player in college volleyball get better? Well, for Olivia Babcock, the increase in efficiency has been jaw-dropping.
Babcock leads the nation in kills per set and points per set despite being just 35th in the country in attacks per set.
She is hitting .367 this year, a rapid improvement from .334 a year ago, .323 as a sophomore and .306 as a freshman. Babcock is hitting .470 over the past three matches.
Despite being the focal point of every defense Pitt faces, Babcock's .367 attack percentage ranks eighth among pin hitters.

ON THE ATTACK

Pitt ranks second in the country with a .326 attack percentage. Nebraska is also hitting .326 but the Cornhuskers .3262 is just slightly higher than Pitt at .3258.
The Panthers had hit at least .300 for six straight matches prior to failing to reach that percentage in a sweep at Boston College.
In total, Pitt has hit at least .300 in 12-of-18 matches and at least .400 three times this year, peaking at .476 against Wright State.
Even more impressively, Pitt is hitting .381 inside Victory Heights this season and has reached at least .300 in all seven contests inside the facility.

THE BAYLESS BUILD

Blaire Bayless didn't arrive at Pitt fully built. She built herself here.
Bayless has become the exception in this era of college athletics -- a player who has stayed at the same program for four years and made steady, continual growth throughout her career.
As a freshman in 2023, Bayless played in just seven sets at Pitt with 13 kills. A year later, she saw much more action, playing in 33 matches and 89 sets.
As a junior in 2025, Bayless truly blossomed. She played in 34 matches and 120 sets, increasing her production in almost every area, averaging a career-best 2.65 kills per set on .296 hitting with career-highs in digs (115/0.96 per set), blocks (58/0.48 per set) and points (349/2.91 per set).
But Bayless didn't stop there. In 2026, she is averaging 3.27 kills per set, 1.64 digs per set, 0.63 blocks per set and 3.60 points per set -- each of which are on pace to be career highs. She has become one of the most important pieces to finding balance offensively while also contributing defensively.
Bayless was named to the National Player of the Year Watch List on Oct. 8, becoming the third Pitt player on the list -- along with Olivia Babcock and Izzy Starck.

D-FENCE

Head Coach Dan Fisher said this could be the best defensive team he's coached. With 18 matches down, the numbers are making their case.
Pitt has outdug 14-of-17 opponents in 2026 and is averaging 3.9 per match more than their opponents.
Up front, Pitt ranks No. 3 nationally, and first in the ACC, in blocks at 3.05 per set. Maaike Heilig is No. 11 in the country at 1.49 blocks per set and Abbey Emch is No. 13 at 1.47. Heilig, in fact, is second among all freshmen in the country.

BLOCK PARTY

While Abbey Emch and Maaike Heilig have block totals that rank among the best in the country, Pitt truly has used a team effort to rank No. 3 in the country in blocks per set.
Six players have at least 37 blocks this year, led by Heilig with 70. Emch adds 66 blocks and Olivia Babcock has 60.
Emch had nine blocks in sweeps over Cal and SMU and has at least four blocks in 10 of the 15 matches she has played in.
Since the team's run to five straight Final Fours, Pitt has never had more than four players with at least 60 blocks but the Panthers are on pace to have six players reach that milestone this year.

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Players Mentioned

Olivia Babcock

Blaire Bayless

Abbey Emch

Maaike Heilig

Izzy Starck

Trinity Thompson

University of Pittsburgh Athletics