Raleigh, NC – The Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8-4) fell in three sets on the road to the NC Wolfpack (12-2) on Friday, Sept. 29. The Irish are now 2-2 in ACC play as they prepare to take on Duke and North Carolina next weekend.
Sydney Palazzolo put away a team-best 14 kills and three blocks, followed by Charity McDowell and Phyona Schrader who each chipped in three kills a piece.
Set One
It was a close set one start for the Irish and the Wolfpack with nine ties and four lead changes in the first. Neither team was able to pull away by more than three up to 19-17 mark. Trailing by two, the Irish were unable to close the gap as the Wolfpack scored six of the final seven points to take set one 25-18.
Set Two
The Irish led 7-6 early, but it didn’t take long for the Wolfpack to strike back as they went on a 9-1 run to take a 15-8 advantage. The Irish looked to close the gap, but NC would go on to take set two 25-15.
Set Three
The Irish were off to a strong start in the third with a Paris Thompson and McDowell block giving the Irish a 5-1 lead and forcing an NC State timeout. Back-to-back aces from Hattie Monson capped off a 4-0 run from Notre Dame to extend the Irish lead 10-4 and forced another timeout from the Wolfpack. The Irish maintained their lead as a Palazzolo kill kept the advantage with Notre Dame at 20-14. NC State wasn’t going down without a fight as they were able to close the gap to one at 21-20 and force a Notre Dame timeout. Tied at 22-22, the Irish would take the lead 23-22, but the Wolfpack went on to put away three final kills to take home set three 25-23.
Up Next
The Irish are back on the road as they head back down to North Carolina next weekend to face the Duke Blue Devils on Friday, October 6 and the North Carolina Tar Heels on Sunday, October 8.