North Carolina
0-1
Minnesota
1-0
Tar Heels Drop Season Opener to No. 4 Minnesota, 3-0
August 25, 2017 | Volleyball
Madison, Wis. – No. 11 North Carolina struggled in the 2017 season opener, falling 3-0 (25-16, 25-7, 25-20) to No. 4 Minnesota in the first match of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, hosted by Wisconsin. The 2016 National Semifinalist handed the Tar Heels their first 3-0 loss since Sept. 27, 2015, behind a double-double from freshman opposite hitter Stephanie Samedy.
Sophomore Mia Fradenburg did solid work in her first appearance at libero, leading the match with 16 digs to go with two assists and an ace. Redshirt freshman Holly Carlton directed the Tar Heel offense for the first time, putting up 24 assists, five digs, three blocks and two aces.
However, after leading the ACC with their best season hitting percentage since the early 1980s last year, the Tar Heels hit a measly .009, with just 27 kills and 26 errors, their worst match clip in over a decade. Taylor Leath led the offense with nine kills to go with six digs, followed by Taylor Borup with five of each.
An early run for the Golden Gophers gave Minnesota a 10-4 lead to open the match. Back-to-back kills by Leath cut the deficit in half, 10-7, but a service error and a block helped UM push further in front, 21-14. Carlton served up her first career ace to make it 21-16, but Minnesota won the next four straight to take the opener, 25-16.
The second set was all Minnesota, as the Gophers opened with a 5-0 lead and ran away with the set, 25-7. It marked the first time since 2015 that Carolina had been held to single digits, as UNC made an unprecedented 12 attack errors to hit -.242.
Carolina won the first point after intermission, and back-to-back blocks by Carlton and Beth Nordhorn gave UNC its first real lead, 9-7. A kill by Leath put Carlton back to serve, as she kicked off a 5-0 run with an ace to make it 15-11. However, Minnesota pushed back, as two kills and a block by Samedy put the Gophers back in front, 18-17. Samedy hit one out of bounds to tie it 18-18, but UM then won five straight to make it 23-18. Taylor Fricano subbed in a slammed two kills for Carolina, but Alexis Hart finished off the season opener, as Minnesota completed the sweep, 25-20.
The Tar Heels return to UW Field House on Saturday, Aug. 26, to face the host No. 7 Wisconsin Badgers in the final match of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The match will be streamed live on BTN Plus, with opening serve set for 8 p.m. ET.
