LOUISVILLE – Behind 23 kills from sophomore right side Olivia Babcock, the top-ranked Pitt volleyball team defeated No. 3 Louisville, 3-1 (25-23, 18-25, 25-20, 25-16), Wednesday evening at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky.
With the victory, the Panthers (28-1, 18-1) secured at least a share of the 2024 ACC Championship with an opportunity to win the league outright in the regular-season finale against Georgia Tech.
Wednesday’s victory also marked Pitt’s fifth-straight against the Cardinals (25-4, 17-2), dating back to last season.
Pitt jumped out to a 3-0 lead in set one behind two kills from Babcock. After back-and-forth action, the Panthers held a 7-4 advantage, but Louisville immediately responded with a 4-2 spurt to pull within one (9-8). The Panthers’ block then came alive as they owned a 14-9 lead minutes later. Pitt took a 15-11 advantage into the media timeout as both sides were hitting .300 at the break. Louisville rallied to pull with two once again, but Kelley’s fourth block of the set forced a Cardinal timeout at 18-14.
Despite a late 4-0 push from Louisville, a Stafford kill secured the opening set for Pitt, 25-23. Of note, Babcock recorded a game-high seven kills in the first frame.
After neither side could pull away to open the second set, Louisville went on a 4-0 spurt to take a 9-5 lead. Pitt climbed back into the contest, narrowing its deficit to one at 17-16. The Cardinals then reeled off five straight points, forcing the Panthers to talk things over. Sparked by its…
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