Sunday, November 19
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Georgia Tech
13-16, 8-10ACC
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Photo by: Alex Mowrey/Pitt Athletics
Pitt Remains Atop of ACC Standings with Sweep of Georgia Tech
11/19/2017 4:20:00 PM | Volleyball
Williams, Markovic Pace Panthers Offensively
ATLANTA – The University of Pittsburgh volleyball team remains atop of the ACC following a sweep of Georgia Tech, Sunday afternoon at O'Keefe Gymnasium in Atlanta.
The Panthers, who now own a 23-6 overall record and a 16-2 mark in conference play, remain tied with Louisville atop of the ACC standings after today's straight sets win. Pitt downed the Yellow Jackets (13-16, 8-10 ACC) 25-22, 25-20 and 25-21.
The Panthers were solid both offensively and defensively, out-killing Georgia Tech by 20 kills, 52-32, and out-digging the Yellow Jackets 47-37. Pitt's back row defense was led by redshirt junior Angela Seman with 15 digs.
"I was really pleased with our back row defense," said head coach Dan Fisher. "Out-digging a good defensive team by 10 is a great victory for us."
Redshirt sophomore Stephanie Williams was outstanding for the Panthers as she posted 16 kills on 30 attempts with just two errors. This marks her 22nd game of tallying double-digit kills. Williams also posted four aces and five digs.
Sophomore Nika Markovic finished the match with 15 kills and a .379 hitting percentage, in addition to nine digs and three blocks. She also earned her 22nd match with double-digit kills.
"Our pin hitters were great today and Kamalani [Akeo] did a nice job locating to them. Stephanie [Williams] had a huge day with a lot of kills and very few errors, capping off what was one of her best weekends."
Junior setter Kamalani Akeo put up 46 assists in today's match to help pace the Panthers offense.
Set One: Pitt 25, Georgia Tech 22
Despite a late comeback by Georgia Tech, Pitt outlasted the Yellow Jackets 25-22 in the opening set of the match. The Panthers were outstanding offensively, tallying 17 kills, led by Markovic who had seven. Akeo posted 15 assists to aid Pitt's attack.
With the score tied 5-5 after back-and-forth points, the Panthers went on a 6-1 run to force Georgia Tech to take its first of two quick timeouts. Pitt posted three kills, two aces and a block to take an 11-6 lead.
Just four points leader, three of which were the Panthers, the Yellow Jackets called for a second break as Pitt extended its lead following an ace by Williams to 14-7.
Out of the break, Georgia Tech made a comeback, pulling within one of the Panthers, 20-19. The Yellow Jackets outscored Pitt 12-6 and forced the Panthers to use both of their timeouts.
Despite the late comeback, Pitt went on to win the set 25-22 behind a dominant performance by Markovic. The sophomore had a hand in all five of the Panthers' final points, as the she got Pitt back on track with back-to-back kills and a block assisted by Ndee to put the Panthers ahead 23-19. Markovic also gave the Panthers set point, 24-20, before closing out the frame with the winning kill, after consecutive points by Georgia Tech.
Set Two: Pitt 25, Georgia Tech 20
Pitt took a 2-0 lead in the match after earning a second set win, 25-20. Pitt was solid on offense once again, hitting .389 with 19 kills. Williams led the squad with seven kills and hit at a .462 clip, while Lund added five.
The Panthers got out in front early 8-3, but a physical Georgia Tech team battled back to trail Pitt by just a point, 12-11, and force the Panthers to call a timeout.
The break gave Pitt a chance to regroup and doing just that, extended its lead to 18-14 thanks to back-to-back kills by Lund and Williams.
The Yellow Jackets took a timeout of their own but were unable to hold off a dominant Panthers offense.
Set Three: Pitt 25, Georgia Tech 21
Despite trailing early in the third set, Pitt battled back to earn a 25-21 victory over Georgia Tech and take the match in straight sets.
The Panthers struggled out of the gates in the final frame falling behind early, but a 10-point run, led by Williams at the service line, put Pitt back on top with a 17-10 advantage. The run featured four kills by the Panthers and two aces by Williams.
Pitt led by as many as eight points, but the Yellow Jackets didn't go down without a fight as they made their way back within three, 23-20.
Georgia Tech forced the Panthers to take a timeout but the Yellow Jackets were unable to hold off Pitt as Williams smacked two straight kills to end the match.
Up Next
Pitt will close out the regular season with matches at Virginia Tech and Virginia next weekend.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
The Panthers, who now own a 23-6 overall record and a 16-2 mark in conference play, remain tied with Louisville atop of the ACC standings after today's straight sets win. Pitt downed the Yellow Jackets (13-16, 8-10 ACC) 25-22, 25-20 and 25-21.
The Panthers were solid both offensively and defensively, out-killing Georgia Tech by 20 kills, 52-32, and out-digging the Yellow Jackets 47-37. Pitt's back row defense was led by redshirt junior Angela Seman with 15 digs.
"I was really pleased with our back row defense," said head coach Dan Fisher. "Out-digging a good defensive team by 10 is a great victory for us."
Redshirt sophomore Stephanie Williams was outstanding for the Panthers as she posted 16 kills on 30 attempts with just two errors. This marks her 22nd game of tallying double-digit kills. Williams also posted four aces and five digs.
Sophomore Nika Markovic finished the match with 15 kills and a .379 hitting percentage, in addition to nine digs and three blocks. She also earned her 22nd match with double-digit kills.
"Our pin hitters were great today and Kamalani [Akeo] did a nice job locating to them. Stephanie [Williams] had a huge day with a lot of kills and very few errors, capping off what was one of her best weekends."
Junior setter Kamalani Akeo put up 46 assists in today's match to help pace the Panthers offense.
Set One: Pitt 25, Georgia Tech 22
Despite a late comeback by Georgia Tech, Pitt outlasted the Yellow Jackets 25-22 in the opening set of the match. The Panthers were outstanding offensively, tallying 17 kills, led by Markovic who had seven. Akeo posted 15 assists to aid Pitt's attack.
With the score tied 5-5 after back-and-forth points, the Panthers went on a 6-1 run to force Georgia Tech to take its first of two quick timeouts. Pitt posted three kills, two aces and a block to take an 11-6 lead.
Just four points leader, three of which were the Panthers, the Yellow Jackets called for a second break as Pitt extended its lead following an ace by Williams to 14-7.
Out of the break, Georgia Tech made a comeback, pulling within one of the Panthers, 20-19. The Yellow Jackets outscored Pitt 12-6 and forced the Panthers to use both of their timeouts.
Despite the late comeback, Pitt went on to win the set 25-22 behind a dominant performance by Markovic. The sophomore had a hand in all five of the Panthers' final points, as the she got Pitt back on track with back-to-back kills and a block assisted by Ndee to put the Panthers ahead 23-19. Markovic also gave the Panthers set point, 24-20, before closing out the frame with the winning kill, after consecutive points by Georgia Tech.
Set Two: Pitt 25, Georgia Tech 20
Pitt took a 2-0 lead in the match after earning a second set win, 25-20. Pitt was solid on offense once again, hitting .389 with 19 kills. Williams led the squad with seven kills and hit at a .462 clip, while Lund added five.
The Panthers got out in front early 8-3, but a physical Georgia Tech team battled back to trail Pitt by just a point, 12-11, and force the Panthers to call a timeout.
The break gave Pitt a chance to regroup and doing just that, extended its lead to 18-14 thanks to back-to-back kills by Lund and Williams.
The Yellow Jackets took a timeout of their own but were unable to hold off a dominant Panthers offense.
Set Three: Pitt 25, Georgia Tech 21
Despite trailing early in the third set, Pitt battled back to earn a 25-21 victory over Georgia Tech and take the match in straight sets.
The Panthers struggled out of the gates in the final frame falling behind early, but a 10-point run, led by Williams at the service line, put Pitt back on top with a 17-10 advantage. The run featured four kills by the Panthers and two aces by Williams.
Pitt led by as many as eight points, but the Yellow Jackets didn't go down without a fight as they made their way back within three, 23-20.
Georgia Tech forced the Panthers to take a timeout but the Yellow Jackets were unable to hold off Pitt as Williams smacked two straight kills to end the match.
Up Next
Pitt will close out the regular season with matches at Virginia Tech and Virginia next weekend.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Team Stats
UP
GT
Kills
52
32
Errors
19
14
Attempts
117
105
Hitting %
.282
.171
Points
63.0
46.0
Assists
50
30
Aces
7
5
Blocks
4.0
9.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
16
Aces
4
Blocks
1
Kills
15
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
9
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
5
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Players Mentioned
S
/ VolleyballRS
/ Volleyball
L
/ VolleyballOH
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