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University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Miami
UNC Volleyball Downs Hurricanes in Commanding Sweep
November 1, 2014 | Volleyball
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - After a dramatic match on the road against Georgia Tech, the Tar Heels (18-2, 9-1 ACC) recovered with a commanding sweep (25-21, 25-12, 25-22) of the Miami Hurricanes, never relinquishing the lead through the course of the match.
Leigh Andrew led the Carolina effort, hitting a phenomenal .467 on the way to 15 kills, 9 digs, and 3 blocks. Paige Neuenfeldt also played well, hitting .615 for the match on 8 kills with 3 blocks
Lauren McAdoo barely missed a double-double, adding 11 kills with 9 digs with especially strong play in the first set when she added 6 kills.
“It was an exciting match for our outsides. Both Leigh and Lauren were extremely effective for us tonight,” said Assistant Coach Eve Rackham.
The No. 9 Tar Heels limited All-ACC hitter Savannah Leaf to a .250 attack percentage on only 12 kills.
Although the Heels started the first set poorly with back-to-back service errors and sloppy play on the part of UNC, commanding play by McAdoo, as she hit .400 for the set, helped get the Tar Heels going. They also limited All-ACC hitter Savannah Leaf to a -.083 percentage and only two kills in the frame.
The first set stayed even until successive block and kills midway through the set by McAdoo allowed the Heels to take a 14-11 lead. Another McAdoo kill led to the largest Heels' lead to that point, 18-14. A kill by Taylor Treacy down the line gave the Heels a five point lead at 20-15, and the Heels never looked back after that. As a team, the Heels hit well in the first set, with 16 kills for a .394, as Neuenfeldt and Andrew added three and two kills, respectively.
The Tar Heels cruised in set two behind dominant performances by Andrew and Neuenfeldt, who together combined for eight kills.
The Heels came out to a fast start in the second set, going up 4-0 after two Miami hitting errors. Andrew's service ace put the Heels up 8-2, capping a 3-0 Tar Heel run and triggering a Miami timeout. Neuenfeldt crushed back-to-back kills, giving the Heels an 11-4 lead. Andrew earned a kill to give the Heels their largest lead of the set 20-10. She and Leigh led the Heels, hitting .600 and .400 respectively.
Miami continued struggled to create offense in the first two sets, hitting only .121 and .081 in the first two sets.
Leigh Andrew lit up the Hurricanes in the third set, hitting for an electric .571 attack percentage on 8 kills.
The Heels started out strong yet again, leading 4-0 after the break. The Hurricanes mounted a comeback, closing the gap to 7-6 due in part to a series of UNC errors. Andrew contributed two consecutive kills to help the Heels to a 13-10 lead. Neuenfeldt triggered a late timeout from Miami by giving the Heels a 24-21 lead with her strong kill, and the match concluded on the next point on a Miami blocking error.
Victoria McPherson and Taylor Treacy contributed to the UNC victory, adding four and three kills respectively. Jordyn Schnabl also had a solid match with 6 digs and 21 assists.
“It was important to get this victory and get some rest over this weekend. Miami is one several very good teams we have as we finish up conference play and it was great to get the victory on our home floor,” concluded Rackham.
UNC will travel to Boston College for a 7:00 PM match on Friday, November 7th against the Eagles in Chestnut Hill.
