University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Duke
Tar Heels Defeat Duke 3-2 in Five-Set Thriller
November 26, 2014 | Volleyball
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The Carolina volleyball team clinched at least a share of the ACC Championship with a thrilling 3-2 (25-19, 24-26, 25-19, 30-32, 15-13) victory over rival No. 21 Duke Wednesday afternoon.
North Carolina, who clinched at least a share of its first ACC championship since 2008, had to battle past the top offense in the ACC in order to grab the win.
Carolina knocked down 76 kills as a team and picked up 97 digs, the most team digs for a Tar Heel team since Oct. 9, 2011 when Carolina racked up 102 digs.
“It seemed appropriate that for it to get to this level of volleyball, it was two really good teams fighting it out to within a point,” said Head Coach Joe Sagula.
“I think we both brought the best out of each other today. I was really proud of our team to come out with the upper hand.”
Carolina used a total team effort to carry the offensive load in the match, as four Tar Heels poured in double-digit kills while UNC hit .271 as a team. Leigh Andrew led North Carolina with a career-high 18 kills and 15 digs in the match.
“Leigh had 18 kills to lead us and was so sneaky. Lauren McAdoo, I thought she had a career day. And in terms of her play, her attitude, her mentality, she did, this was her best match,“ said Sagula.
Lauren McAdoo had 14 kills for UNC on a .306 hitting percentage with two aces, two blocks and seven digs. Fellow senior Chaniel Nelson added 13 kills and five blocks, while libero Ece Taner had a career-high 30 digs.
UNC suffered a slow start in set one but turned the tide when McAdoo stepped back to the service line. Her 3-0 run included one ace and gave North Carolina an 8-6 lead and the momentum for the frame.
A McAdoo kill pushed the Tar Heels advantage to 14-10, then a stuff block by Paige Neuenfeldt and Nelson a few points later pushed the score to 18-13.
The Blue Devils threatened to make a run when an error from UNC cut the score to 19-16, but a service error from Duke followed by service ace by McAdoo pushed the lead to 21-16. A kill from Victoria McPherson secured set one for Carolina, 25-18.
Carolina got out to a slow start in set two as well and was forced to rally late in the set. Down seven, a Duke service error sparked a 10-3 run from North Carolina that ended with UNC tying the match at 19-19 on a kill by Taylor Treacy.
Carolina would not be able to grab the lead from the Blue Devils, as Duke maintained a steady one-point lead late in the set at 21-20 and 22-21. A big block from Neuenfeldt and McAdoo would tie the game at 23-23.
The massive run, however, had resulted in Carolina running out of substitutions. The Carolina offense stalled as a result and two kills by Emily Sklar gave set two to Duke, 26-24.
Much like the second game, Carolina had a late run to tie up the score in set three after trailing early. After a kill by Nelson cut the Duke lead to 16-13, a block by Neuenfeldt and McAdoo reenergized UNC and ignited a 7-2 run that moved Carolina into the lead at 21-19.
Defensive specialist Sheila Doyle would use strong serves to help Carolina cruise to the end of the game, as a kill by Andrew gave the Tar Heels the 25-19 win in set three.
Sets four and five had shades of last year's final Duke-UNC match, a victory for Duke 21-19 in the fifth set where Carolina squandered seven match points but failed to capitalize
Carolina had four match points late in set four thanks to six kills in the set from McAdoo, but Duke leaned on Emily Sklar late in the frame to take the game. The Tar Heels led 21-19 after a Duke service error, but could not hold onto the lead as Jordan Tucker grabbed a kill and a block to tie the frame.
A kill by Emily Sklar tied the game again at 23-23, before an Andrew kill gave the Tar Heels match point #1 at 24-23. Sklar knocked down a kill to tie, and the teams traded points until Sklar's 11th kill of the fourth set ended the game 32-30 for Duke.
In set five, the two teams battled point-for-point until Heather Gearhart stepped to the service line and sparked at 5-1 run to put the Tar Heels up 10-6. Duke immediately responded with a 4-0 run of its own, capped by a kill from Tucker to tie set five at 10-10.
Late in game five, Nelson pounded her 12th kill to put UNC up 13-11, but Obeime knocked down a kill to cut the lead to one. Nelson responded with a kill to give the Tar Heels match point #5 at 14-12.
After a UNC error, the Tar Heels led by only one, at 14-13. Setter Jordyn Schnabl called on Nelson with the match on the line, as she knocked the kill off the block to give Carolina the 15-13 win in set five and the match win, 3-2.
Junior middle blocker Paige Neuenfeldt continued her hot play with 12 kills, eight blocks and three digs with a .346 hitting percentage. Taylor Treacy added eight kills and six blocks for Carolina.
Both Carolina setters turned out double-doubles in the winning effort, as Schnabl had 30 assists and 13 digs while Abigail Curry had 29 assists and a career-high 13 digs.
The Tar Heels (25-2, 16-1 ACC) remain in first place in the ACC standings with the win, holding a one-game advantage over No. 8 Florida State with just one game remaining.
“We know we have a tie, but we don't want a tie. We are playing Friday for a championship and it feels great because this league has gotten so darn good.”
“Right now, I told them tomorrow that we are coming to practice, because Friday is the day that we play to win a championship,” said Sagula.
