It was a rough weekend for the NC State volleyball team in Raleigh, as the squad dropped two matches against the ACC’s two Florida programs: No. 3 Florida State and Miami. With the losses, the Wolfpack (13-10, 2-9 ACC) matched its total number of conference losses from 2013.
Facing the No. 1 and No. 4 teams in the conference in the same weekend, senior outside hitter Dariyan Hopper said playing in the ACC was full of challenges.
“It was tough,” Hopper said. “But in the ACC, anybody can beat anybody on any given day.”
The Pack’s weekend opened with a meeting against Florida State squad on Halloween night. The No. 3 Seminoles roared back to win in four after NCSU took the first set. The loss marked the Pack’s 25th straight against FSU.
On Sunday, the Pack faced a powerful Miami offense, featuring the best hitter-setter combo in the ACC. Entering Sunday’s match, senior outside hitter Savannah Leaf and freshman setter Haley Templeton were ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in kills per set and assists per set in the conference.
“They’re one of the top offensive teams in the league,” Head Coach Bryan Bunn said.
In the opening set, the Pack used an early 6-2 run to distance itself from the ‘Canes. Miami fought back to tie the set and scored five of the final six points to take a 1-0 lead in the match. Hopper led the way for the Pack in the first with six kills.
The first set belonged to Templeton and Leaf. In the first set alone, Templeton dished out 11 assists while Leaf lit up the scoreboard with an incredible nine kills.
“We worked on hitting balls hard in practice [to prepare for Miami],” Bunn said. “We weren’t where we needed to be defensively.”
Templeton finished the match with 35 assists, while Leaf recorded a double-double with 17 kills and 10 digs.
The second set was very tightly contested, featuring 12 ties and six lead changes. Once again, the ‘Canes used a late run to pull away from the Pack and took a 2-0 lead heading into the intermission.
Despite conceding two quick kills to Leaf in the opening moments of the second set, the Pack held the ACC’s top hitter to just three kills in the second.
The third set played out the same as the first two, with the Pack jumping out to a quick lead but eventually falling to Miami in the final points of the set, succumbing to a three-set sweep. Bunn said his team simply did not finish.
“We just didn’t fight,” Bunn said. “We were in each set, then they would go on runs and we didn’t have the energy that we needed as a team.”
Miami’s service proved to be difficult for State down the stretch, as three of the Hurricanes’ final 12 points came from aces.
“We need to track the ball,” Bunn said. “The ball would hit the floor two feet in front of them. We need to get our feet set better.”
The ‘Canes finished the match with seven service aces, two of which came from Leaf, while the Pack recorded just one ace and seven errors.
State has an easier schedule next weekend, as the Pack will have Friday off before hosting Georgia Tech on Sunday.
