EUGENE, Ore. – The No. 3 University of Pittsburgh volleyball team (1-0, 0-0 ACC) opened the season against No. 3 Oregon (0-1, 0-0 Big Ten) on Friday night at the Matthew Knight Arena. The Panthers held the Ducks to a .186 hitting percentage while setter Rachel Fairbanks recorded her first double-double of the season with 34 assists and 10 digs.
The Panthers began the match with all the momentum, getting off to an early 8-4 lead behind three straight aces from Olivia Babcock. Pitt middles Bre Kelley and Ryla Jones terminated a pair of balls to propel Valeria Vazquez Gomez to the service line. She then delivered three straight aces of her own to extend the Pitt lead to 17-8. Three kills apiece from Babcock and Torrey Stafford was enough to secure the first set in demanding fashion, 25-12.
Oregon came out of the break with some newfound momentum, getting out to an early 6-4 lead. Despite a trio of kills from Stafford, the Oregon offense forced Pitt to take a timeout, down 11-8. Freshman Mallorie Meyer recorded her first career ace and strung together a handful of points to cause Oregon to take a timeout. A few Pitt errors swung the momentum back in the Duck’s favor, as Pitt called its final timeout, up 20-19. The two teams went back and forth for the remainder of the set, but a Stafford kill and Oregon error secured a 2-0 lead going into the break.
Pitt and Oregon traded points as neither team called a timeout before the media break although the Panthers held the 15-11 advantage. Two kills from Valeria Vazquez Gomez and an ace from Fairbanks caused Oregon to take a timeout as Pitt held the advantage, 19-15. Two hitting errors and a handful of Oregon kills left Pitt to take a timeout. The Panthers rebounded and ultimately closed out the set, 25-23 after a Vazquez Gomez kill.
NOTES
– The Panthers earn their first top 10 win of the season
– Four Panthers registered at least seven kills
– Rachel Fairbanks had a match-high 34 assists along with 10 digs to notch a double-double
– Torrey Stafford recorded a match-high 13 kills and added five digs
– Bre Kelley returned to play with a dominant seven kill, four block performance, hitting .667
– Ryla Jones and Mallorie Meyer played in their…
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