PITTSBURGH – The No. 1 Pitt volleyball team (29-1, 19-1 ACC) defeated No. 19 Georgia Tech (20-9, 12-8 ACC), 3-2 (25-10, 24-26, 25-13, 18-25, 17-15), to clinch the 2024 ACC Championship title outright Saturday afternoon and remain undefeated this season at the Fitzgerald Field House. Torrey Stafford recorded 16 kills and eight digs, and Olivia Babcock notched her second career triple-double with 18 kills, 12 digs and a career-high 10 blocks.
Pitt was propelled to its third-straight ACC Championship by a career-high 15 kills from Bre Kelley, who had the go-ahead block in the fifth set to reach match point. Kelley hit .480 in the contest and blocked nine balls to go with three digs.
With the win, the Panthers moved to 17-2 all-time against Georgia Tech.
Pitt ultimately did not trail in the first set and got out to a demanding 9-2 lead, forcing Georgia Tech to take a timeout. The Yellow Jackets tried to narrow the Pitt lead but were unable to as the Panthers forced Georgia Tech to take its final timeout, down 22-9. Two attack errors and a Cat Flood ace secured the first set win, 25-10. The Panthers were paced by Kelley’s four kills on a 1.000 hitting percentage. Olivia Babcock added three kills on .286 hitting and three blocks. The Panthers held Georgia Tech to a -.065 hitting percentage in the set.
The Panthers and Yellow Jackets went back and forth at the beginning of the second set and were tied at 7-7. An 8-3 run from the Panthers behind strong serving from Rachel Fairbanks gave Pitt a 15-10 advantage at the media timeout. Georgia Tech rebounded well and tied the Panthers at 20-20, but a Babcock kill and a Yellow Jacket hitting error caused Georgia Tech to take a timeout. Both teams were tied at 24-24, but a kill on the side of the Yellow Jackets forced Pitt to take a timeout, down 24-25. A Panther attacking error allowed for Georgia Tech to take the second set, 26-24. The set saw eight lead changes, and Babcock and Bre Kelley both had five kills in the set.
Pitt responded to the set loss with a dominant run in the third and caused Georgia Tech to take a timeout, down 5-12. A Stafford kill and an ace from Babcock extended the lead to 14-5, and the Panthers continued their dominant play for the remainder of the set, taking the…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Pitt Panthers #H2P…