The NC State volleyball team lost in five grueling sets to the Boston College Eagles on Sunday, Oct. 16 in Reynolds Coliseum.
The Wolfpack (11-8, 5-3 ACC) couldn’t silence the visiting Eagles (14-8, 2-6 ACC), who snapped a five-game losing streak with this win. NC State looked perfect in the first set, but after falling victim to some great plays from across the net, the Pack dropped the second and third set. It came back with a win in the fourth, but eventually lost in the fifth and final set.
The game started optimistically for the Pack as it opened the scoring off a kill from graduate opposite hitter Vanja Bukilic. High energy on the Wolfpack’s side of the net got the team going, closing the first set with a dominating score of 25-13. The team totaled 14 kills this set, the majority coming from freshman outside hitter Ava Brizard.
“[Boston College] did a good job, they pushed us and pushed us to a very, very uncomfortable zone after set one,” said head coach Luka Slabe. “We managed everything really well, played good volleyball. Then they started pushing us with their serve, and therefore we were a little bit in trouble.”
Whatever momentum the Pack was feeling in the first set was nowhere to be found in the second and third sets. Boston College took a quick 5-1 lead early in the second set and State did not reciprocate the energy. The third set saw nine scoring ties between the teams, but once again the Eagles rebuilt momentum and took a 2-1 lead.
Sophomore outside hitter Martyna Leoniak was the Wolfpack’s shining star during this slow period as she maxed out with a hitting percentage of .833 and was a tough defensive player blocking at the net. During the second set, senior setter Kristin McDaniel recorded her 2,000th career assist.
“It’s my first season with Kristen — she’s very supportive,” Leoniak said. “She’s a great girl. She’s working hard and I’m so happy for her, and I just want to work more and more with her and see the results.”
The fourth set was another tough battle between both teams as they traded points back and forth. Graduate libero Priscilla Hernandez recorded an ace, joining freshman middle blocker Lily Cropper, who finished the match with two service aces, in the box score. With the match on the line, an important call from the referees was overturned, giving the set to State and tying the match at 2-2.
“When you have a hard time killing the ball in both zones, then it’s hard to win,” Slabe said. “…It’s just this weird combo, a perfect storm of struggle that we still have a hard time overcoming.”
The fifth and final set was electrifying from the start, with the Wolfpack taking command of the court, but Boston College came from behind multiple times. The Eagles outpaced the Wolfpack 10-7 in kills to win the set and the match.
NC State will hit the road this week as it heads up to Durham, North Carolina to play rival Duke on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at 8 p.m.
