LEXINGTON, Ky. –The No. 10 University of Pittsburgh volleyball team (3-1, 0-0 ACC) shut down No. 15 Kentucky (1-2, 0-0 SEC) 3-0 in Rupp Arena Friday Night behind 11 kills and a .500 hitting percentage from freshman right side Olivia Babcock and a career-high 18 digs from junior libero Emmy Klika.
The Panthers and Wildcats traded off points at the beginning of the first set in Rupp Arena until Pitt went on a five-point run to push the score to 12-7 behind the serving of Rachel Fairbanks and two kills from Bre Kelley. The Panthers ended the first set on a 13-7 run as senior outside hitter Valeria Vazquez Gomez registered five kills and hit .714 while the team hit a strong .480, limiting the Kentucky offense to .000.
Kentucky came out of the break fighting, keeping things interesting as the teams were tied at 11-11. A pair of Wildcat errors and a kill by Babcock pushed a 15-14 Pitt lead at the media timeout. Three kills by Vazquez Gomez and an attack error at 24-21 secured a set two win for the Panthers.
The Panthers and Wildcats continued to go point for point in the third set before Kentucky registered a pair of points behind two Pitt errors for a 9-7 lead. The Panthers went on a 4-0 run thanks to a Vazquez Gomez ace and Babcock kill. Pitt continued to hold momentum as it pushed a 23-20 score. A Pitt attack error and Kentucky kill forced the Panthers to take a timeout at 23-22. Another Kentucky error gave Pitt set point where Vazquez Gomez registered the match-winning kill from Klika for a…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Pitt Panthers #H2P…