PITTSBURGH – The No. 1 University of Pittsburgh volleyball team (10-0, 0-0 ACC) swept UMBC (1-10, 0-0 America East) Wednesday night at the Fitzgerald Field House for its 30th straight set won. Cat Flood recorded a career-high six kills on a .455 hitting percentage, and Bianca Garibaldi and Dalia Vírlan notched a career-high two and four kills, respectively.
Pitt and UMBC went back and forth at the beginning of set one, with Pitt holding a narrow 4-3 lead. The Panthers went on an 11-7 run leading into the media timeout, 15-10, behind four kills from Olivia Babcock. Blaire Bayless went on a 3-0 service run, recording her first career ace to extend the Pitt lead to 18-10, forcing UMBC to take a timeout. The Retrievers responded and put together a few points but couldn’t ultimately close the gap and called their final timeout, down 15-23. A kill from Bayless and Bre Kelley secured the first set victory, 25-17. Torrey Stafford recorded five kills in the first set, hitting .714 on seven swings.
The Panthers got out to a quicker start in set two with the help of strong serving from Valeria Vazquez Gomez, and UMBC needed a timeout, down 2-7. Pitt sided out perfectly for the following 15 points, disallowing the Retrievers to gain momentum, causing them to take their final timeout at 17-7. Five Pitt kills and three UMBC attack errors allowed the Panthers to take the second set, 25-15.
Pitt continued to roll in set three, as the Panthers got out to an early 8-3 lead. Flood’s four kills and tough serving from Pitt allowed the Panthers a comfortable lead at the media timeout, up 15-8. The Panthers did not slow down after the break, as a second ace from Flood and two kills from Vírlan was enough for UMBC to call its final timeout, down 10-19. Ryla Jones terminated in the middle for a pair of kills, and a few Retriever errors was enough for Pitt to dominate the set, 15-14, and sweep its 10th straight opponent.
NOTES
– 10 Panthers recorded at least one kill in the match
– Six Panthers notched at least one ace
– Cat Flood put away a career-high six balls
– Dalia Vírlan (4) and Bianca Garibaldi (2) notched career highs in kills
– Ryla Jones recorded her first career ace
– Blaire Bayless…
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