PITTSBURGH – The No. 1 Panthers (23-1, 13-1 ACC) host the No. 22 Florida State Seminoles (18-6, 10-4 ACC) and Miami Hurricanes (18-7, 9-5 ACC) for a pair of ACC matches at the Fitzgerald Field House. Pitt takes on Florida State on Friday at 5 p.m. and Miami on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Pitt holds a 13-6 lead in the overall series but look to even the score as Florida State upset the Panthers in five sets in Tallahassee last season. Olivia Babcock racked up 19 kills, five blocks and four digs in the loss. The Panthers and Seminoles shared the ACC Regular Season Championship last season.
Pitt has a 15-4 series advantage over Miami and defeated the Hurricanes twice in 2023. The Panthers beat Miami in four sets on the road but took care of business in three sets at the Fitzgerald Field House. Pin hitters Olivia Babcock and Valeria Vazquez Gomez led the Panthers in the sweep, combining for 27 kills, 15 digs, six blocks and four aces.
TERRIFIC TRIO
• Rachel Fairbanks, Olivia Babcock and Torrey Stafford have been named semifinalists for the 2024 AVCA Division I Player of the Year award.
• Pitt’s three nominees lead the country, and Nebraska is the only other team team to have more than one (2).
• All three were named AVCA All-Americans last season and are on track to earn the award once again.
WELL-OILED MACHINE
• Pitt ranks among the top 20 in the country for hitting percentage (1st – .336), opponent hitting percentage (1st – .109), aces per set (8th – 2.06), blocks per set (6th – 2.91), kills per set (18th – 13.92) and assists per set (16th -13.05).
COUNT ‘EM!
• Pitt notched its eighth top-25 win of the season against No. 25 North Carolina.
• Five of those eight wins have come against ACC opponents (No. 13 Georgia Tech, No. 15 SMU, No. 5 Stanford, No. 4 Louisville, No. 25 North Carolina).
• The Panthers are 3-0 against top five teams this year (No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Louisville, No. 5 Stanford).
VOLLEYBALL TAHN
• Eight Pitt volleyball matches have sold out this season (Penn State, Cal, Stanford, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Duke, Florida State and Miami).
• Seven of those eight took place in the Fitzgerald Field House while the victory over the Nittany Lions was in the Petersen Events Center in front of a…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Pitt Panthers #H2P…