CHAPEL HILL — The volleyball team remained winless in the AC by losing 3-0 to North Carolina on Tuesday night in Chapel Hill. The loss dropped the team to 3-21 overall, and it was the Wolfpack’s 14th ACC loss this season.
The Tar Heels (10-13, 6-8 ACC) had lost four of their last five matches before picking up the win at home against the Wolfpack. UNC Senior Bekah Brinkley led Carolina with 14 kills, while Stephanie Jansma delivered 41 assists. The Tar Heels had a team total of 55 kills and a .269 hitting percentage, while State picked up only 29 kills on a .029 clip.
“They just played their game,” coach Charita Stubbs said. “The reality is we have to score points.”
State opened up with a 2-0 lead in the first game and kept it close until the teams were even at 8-8. From, there the Pack struggled with errors on both kills and assists while the Heels never looked back, taking the first game 30-17. After the match, players said coming out slowly is a trend with the team.
“It’s definitely mental, because we know we have the physical capability to come out strong,” sophomore outside hitter Chrissy Zirpolo said. “It’s a bad habit.”
Freshman opposite side Lauren Zaniboni echoed that assessment.
“A lot of times we come out to a slow start,” Zaniboni said. “There’s no reason why we do it. We just do it.”
Coach Stubbs couldn’t explain the initial sluggishness either.
“I’ve tried [to figure it out]. I’ve watched film,” she said. “There’s nothing [in] the film [that] tells me, but I think it has to do with competitiveness.”
The second game was the Pack’s best statistical showing of the match as Carolina fell behind early 10-7. The Pack continued to score on kills by DeMar and Zaniboni and led at 24-23. With the match tied 29-29, Alex Smith’s serve went long, and the Tar Heels won the second game with the next kill.
The final game would prove to be a blowout as the Heels surged to an 13-2 lead. Stubbs lamented that the loss in game two took the fight out of the Pack.
“It definitely deflated them,” she said. “We were up and in the position to win that game.”
Zirpolo also said the team came out defeated
“When we walked out there we were just dead,” Zirpolo said of the third game.
The Pack would never get any closer after trailing 13-2 and would lose the final game 30-15.
Smith dished out 17 assists, while freshman libero Lindsay Benac led the Pack with 14 digs. Zirpolo collected State’s only service ace, while senior Ashley Wallace led State with seven kills.
“There’s no excuse for the way we played,” Wallace said. “We played like crap. There’s no excuse for it, especially against our rival.”
