NC State volleyball entered its game on Sunday looking for a statement win but got swept at home by the No. 1 team in the country, the Pittsburgh Panthers.
The Wolfpack (14-12, 9-9 ACC) came in looking to build off of momentum after a five-set match against No. 10 SMU, but in all three sets, the Panthers (27-1, 17-1 ACC) stayed ahead and maintained control, winning each set by seven or more points.
Before the game, NC State recognized two players who had achieved a milestone in the past game against SMU with gold volleyballs. Senior middle blocker Jada Allen was recognized for recording 400 total career blocks and senior opposite hitter Amanda Rice was honored for recording 1,000 career kills.
“We’re so proud of them,” said graduate setter Naomi Cabello. “Immediately when I found out, I texted them and they immediately said thank you and thanked the passers and setters for helping them reach that goal.”
The first set saw the Pack go to war with the Panthers, tying the set multiple times, and eventually taking a 15-14 lead. Pittsburgh, however, responded in a way that a first-ranked team would and rebounded to win the set 25-18. The second set was all Panthers, with Pitt winning 25-12 and the third set saw a fast start for the Wolfpack taking an early 7-6 lead, but a Pitt scoring clinched the third set 25-17 and the match.
The game saw a big crowd in attendance for hosting the number one team. Wolfpack Nation showed out and was loud when NC State made big plays. There were also several Pittsburgh fans in the crowd cheering for their team as well, an indication that fan support for volleyball is increasing drastically.
“We were just really excited to host them in our court because they are a potential Final Four team,” Cabello said. “It’s just good to have that experience, especially with a really tough crowd.”
As the red-and-white move forward into the final stretch of its season, one thing that it needs to do is regroup and stay focussed as it now falls to .500 in ACC play. While nobody likes to lose, putting up a fight against the first-ranked team will make any group proud. Combine that with the five-set game against SMU, this can serve as a learning experience and confidence booster for the team.
“I think we should take it as a learning experience”, said Cabello. “We can do better with how close we were in the first and third set, just taking that and then trying to use that to our game against Miami.”
The Wolfpack will play its next game on Wednesday when it hosts the Miami Hurricanes for senior day. The Pack’s final home game is slated to start at 2 p.m.
