Carolina Comes Up Short to No. 4 Minnesota, 3-1

Saturday, August 25

Minneapolis

8 PM

North Carolina

0-2

Minnesota

2-0

North Carolina

Minnesota

August 26, 2018 | Volleyball

Box Score

MINNEAPOLIS – Led by double-doubles from Destiny Cox and Hunter Atherton, North Carolina dropped a hard-fought, four-set battle to No. 4 Minnesota Saturday night at the Target Center. After dropping the first two sets, 25-16, 26-24, the Tar Heels were resilient and took the third set, 30-28, before the Gophers won the final set, 25-23.

"We showed great improvement," head coach Joe Sagula said. "From a team that so many unforced errors in the first set, to play three two-point sets – I'm just really proud of how we've improved and the courage we showed to come back. In the third set, we were down 9-15 and showed the courage to come back. We stayed relentless and pursued every ball. I'm really pleased to see us playing at this level against the No. 4 team in the country. It was a great improvement in the last 24 hours. We out-dug them tonight thanks to our back line which is hard to do against a good, well-coached team like Minnesota."

For the second consecutive match, Cox led all hitters with 22 kills while collecting 15 digs. Atherton steadied the Tar Heels with 45 assists and 11 digs. Carolina's back row was grounded by Mia Fradenburg's 17 digs. Katharine Esterley led the front line with five blocks while Cox, Ava Bell and Raleigh Clark each stuffed three. Coming off the bench, Skylar Wine slugged 15 kills while Bell rounded out the hitters with 11. Minnesota's Stephanie Samedy and Regan Pittman downed 20 and 17 kills, respectively while three Gophers logged double-figure digs.

The Tar Heels opened the match as Cox and Esterley connected for a block to earn the first point against No. 4 Minnesota. Coming out of the timeout, UNC went on a 4-0 run with Greer Moseman serving to keep the set within two. A kill by Bell and a Moseman ace set up for another Carolina block by Cox and Clark. Coming off the bench, Wine quickly made a statement with a kill and block. Despite dropping the set, 25-16, Carolina limited the fourth-ranked Gophers to a .172 clip in the first set.

Mirroring the first set, Carolina earned the first point of the set as Bell swatted kill down the pipe for an early lead. With an ace by Fradenburg, the Tar Heels went on a four-point run to take an early 7-3 lead. Trailing by two at the break, UNC came out swinging with a pair of kills by Wine to reclaim the edge, 16-15. The Tar Heels went a 3-0 run late in the second set, forcing Minnesota to use its second time out. However, the Gophers fought off a pair of set points to win the set, 26-24. The Gophers' Pittman was 7-for-8 in the frame. The two battled through nine tie scores and three lead changes in the second frame.

After trailing by six early in the third set, Carolina bounced back to take a 23-20 lead thanks to a 7-0 run with Moseman at the line. The Tar Heels battled through three match points for Minnesota to hand the Gophers their first set loss of the season, 30-28. A balanced attack and solid defense in the back row set up for Carolina's win in the third set. Cox led the hitters with six kills while five Tar Heels collected two or more digs in the frame.

UNC continued to battle in the fourth set, keeping the score within three before taking a four-point lead at the 12-8 mark thanks to an Aristea Tontai-Bell block. Leading by as many as five, the Gophers answered back with Stephanie Samedy's eight kills in the frame. Carolina kept the match within two, but the Gophers clinched match with a 25-23 decision.

"Maybe a month from now, playing the same team at home, maybe the outcome is different," Sagula said. "We had huge growth in the first 48 hours of the season."

The Tar Heels return home Aug. 31 and Sept. 1 to host UNCG, Maryland-Eastern Shore and Michigan State for the Carolina Classic, played in Carmichael Arena.

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