Saturday, September 9
Bowling Green, Ky.
4:00 PM EST
Pitt
4-4
3
vs
1
East Tennessee State
3-6
1
2
3
4
F
Pitt
25
25
21
25
3
ETSU
19
22
25
16
1
Panthers Down Buccaneers in Four Sets
9/9/2017 7:08:00 PM | Volleyball
Williams Tallies 21 Kills Against ETSU
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Behind a season-high 21 kills from redshirt sophomore Stephanie Williams, the University of Pittsburgh volleyball team defeated East Tennessee State University, 3-1 in its final match of the WKU Holiday Inn – University Plaza Invitational in Bowling Green, Ky.
The Panthers (4-4) took a two-set lead to open the match, winning the first and second sets 25-19 and 25-22, respectively. In the third, the Buccaneers (3-6) pulled out a 25-21 victory but were unable to hold off a dominating Pitt team in the fourth 25-16.
As a team, the Panthers tallied 60 kills, recording 15 more than ETSU. Pitt also out-hit the Buccaneers, .283 to .194.
Williams led the Panthers offensively, tallying a season-high 21 kills. The redshirt sophomore hit .375, while tallying an ace, nine digs and five blocks.
Sophomore Nika Markovic, who has been Pitt's most consistent hitter, recorded 11 kills, two aces, nine digs and four blocks.
Other top performers included middles' freshman Chinaza Ndee and sophomore Layne Van Buskirk. Ndee hit .700 on the match with seven kills, while Van Buskirk hit .400 with eight.
Defensively, redshirt junior Angela Seman posted a team-high 17 digs as the Panthers out-dug the ETSU 52-46. At the net, Pitt posted 12.5 team blocks.
All-Tournament Team
Two Panthers in Markovic and Williams were named to the 2017 WKU Holiday Inn – University Plaza Invitational All-Tournament Team.
Markovic hit .352 on the weekend tallying 45 kills and 3.75 per set. She also led the team with five aces and dug up 17 balls in the back row. At the net, she finished with 13 total blocks.
Williams earned the honors after hitting .256 on the weekend including today's standout performance which included 21 kills. The Ohio native also had a nice weekend on defense, tallying 26 digs, while earning seven blocks.
Set One: Pitt 25, ETSU 19
The Panthers found a groove on offense early on in the first set, setting the pace for remainder of the frame. Seven of Pitt's first 10 points were off kills, including back-to-back by senior Mariah Bell.
Leading 10-5, the Panthers extended their lead to 18-12, outscoring the opposing team 8-2. ETSU called a timeout at this point but had no effect as errors continued to plague the Buccaneers.
Three solid blocks led Pitt match point 24-19 and a final kill by Markovic sealed the first-set victory.
Set Two: Pitt 25, ETSU 22
In the second set, Pitt started out with the lead but was forced to take an early timeout as ETSU battled back within a point, 7-6.
The Panthers remained out in front for a short time but the Buccaneers continued to creep back into striking distance.
ETSU tied the score, 13-13, and found a 19-16 lead late in the set which brought on another timeout call by Pitt in an effort to slow the Buccaneers.
The Panthers did just that as they battled back to tie the score thanks to consecutive kills from Markovic and Williams. Pitt regained the lead 23-22, which brought on a Buccaneers timeout, but the Panther roped off two final points to come back and win the set 25-22.
Set Three: ETSU 25, Pitt 21
Pitt and ETSU battled for a lead in at the start of the third set, which the Panthers found early on, 7-5. However, it didn't last long as the Buccaneers evened up the score, which remained close past the midway point.
Late in the set, multiple lead changes occurred, but ETSU put up three straight to take a 21-19 lead after being down 19-18.
Fisher called nearly back-to-back timeouts as ETSU scored two more points after the first to make it five straight and lead 23-19.
The Panthers were unable to make their way back, falling 25-21.
Set Four: Pitt 25, ETSU 16
Pitt put on a dominant performance in the fourth set, after opening the set trailing 3-1. The Panthers scored six straight with Bell at the service line to take a 6-4 lead and continued to add on to that thanks to errors by ETSU.
The Buccaneers took a timeout as Pitt led 12-6, but was unable to make any headway. The Panthers gained a 21-12 advantage following three straight kills, one by Williams and two consecutive by Van Buskirk.
Another break came and went for ETSU, who could only put up three more points before Pitt took the set 25-16.
Up Next
The Panthers will close out non-conference play next weekend, as they open the 2017 home slate with the Panther Challenge. The tournament will feature UC Santa Barbara, Eastern Kentucky and Cleveland State.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
The Panthers (4-4) took a two-set lead to open the match, winning the first and second sets 25-19 and 25-22, respectively. In the third, the Buccaneers (3-6) pulled out a 25-21 victory but were unable to hold off a dominating Pitt team in the fourth 25-16.
As a team, the Panthers tallied 60 kills, recording 15 more than ETSU. Pitt also out-hit the Buccaneers, .283 to .194.
Williams led the Panthers offensively, tallying a season-high 21 kills. The redshirt sophomore hit .375, while tallying an ace, nine digs and five blocks.
Sophomore Nika Markovic, who has been Pitt's most consistent hitter, recorded 11 kills, two aces, nine digs and four blocks.
Other top performers included middles' freshman Chinaza Ndee and sophomore Layne Van Buskirk. Ndee hit .700 on the match with seven kills, while Van Buskirk hit .400 with eight.
Defensively, redshirt junior Angela Seman posted a team-high 17 digs as the Panthers out-dug the ETSU 52-46. At the net, Pitt posted 12.5 team blocks.
All-Tournament Team
Two Panthers in Markovic and Williams were named to the 2017 WKU Holiday Inn – University Plaza Invitational All-Tournament Team.
Markovic hit .352 on the weekend tallying 45 kills and 3.75 per set. She also led the team with five aces and dug up 17 balls in the back row. At the net, she finished with 13 total blocks.
Williams earned the honors after hitting .256 on the weekend including today's standout performance which included 21 kills. The Ohio native also had a nice weekend on defense, tallying 26 digs, while earning seven blocks.
Set One: Pitt 25, ETSU 19
The Panthers found a groove on offense early on in the first set, setting the pace for remainder of the frame. Seven of Pitt's first 10 points were off kills, including back-to-back by senior Mariah Bell.
Leading 10-5, the Panthers extended their lead to 18-12, outscoring the opposing team 8-2. ETSU called a timeout at this point but had no effect as errors continued to plague the Buccaneers.
Three solid blocks led Pitt match point 24-19 and a final kill by Markovic sealed the first-set victory.
Set Two: Pitt 25, ETSU 22
In the second set, Pitt started out with the lead but was forced to take an early timeout as ETSU battled back within a point, 7-6.
The Panthers remained out in front for a short time but the Buccaneers continued to creep back into striking distance.
ETSU tied the score, 13-13, and found a 19-16 lead late in the set which brought on another timeout call by Pitt in an effort to slow the Buccaneers.
The Panthers did just that as they battled back to tie the score thanks to consecutive kills from Markovic and Williams. Pitt regained the lead 23-22, which brought on a Buccaneers timeout, but the Panther roped off two final points to come back and win the set 25-22.
Set Three: ETSU 25, Pitt 21
Pitt and ETSU battled for a lead in at the start of the third set, which the Panthers found early on, 7-5. However, it didn't last long as the Buccaneers evened up the score, which remained close past the midway point.
Late in the set, multiple lead changes occurred, but ETSU put up three straight to take a 21-19 lead after being down 19-18.
Fisher called nearly back-to-back timeouts as ETSU scored two more points after the first to make it five straight and lead 23-19.
The Panthers were unable to make their way back, falling 25-21.
Set Four: Pitt 25, ETSU 16
Pitt put on a dominant performance in the fourth set, after opening the set trailing 3-1. The Panthers scored six straight with Bell at the service line to take a 6-4 lead and continued to add on to that thanks to errors by ETSU.
The Buccaneers took a timeout as Pitt led 12-6, but was unable to make any headway. The Panthers gained a 21-12 advantage following three straight kills, one by Williams and two consecutive by Van Buskirk.
Another break came and went for ETSU, who could only put up three more points before Pitt took the set 25-16.
Up Next
The Panthers will close out non-conference play next weekend, as they open the 2017 home slate with the Panther Challenge. The tournament will feature UC Santa Barbara, Eastern Kentucky and Cleveland State.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Team Stats
UP
ETSU
Kills
60
45
Errors
21
21
Attempts
138
124
Hitting %
.283
.194
Points
77.5
61.0
Assists
51
43
Aces
5
4
Blocks
12.5
12.0
Game Leaders
Kills-Aces-Blocks
Kills
21
Aces
1
Blocks
5
Kills
11
Aces
2
Blocks
4
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
4
Kills
8
Aces
1
Blocks
3
Players Mentioned
OH
/ VolleyballRS
/ Volleyball
RS/MH
/ Volleyball
L
/ VolleyballMB
/ VolleyballOH
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