University of North Carolina Athletics
Friday, October 18
Pittsburgh, Pa.
7 PM
North Carolina
7-10, 4-3
0
at
3
Pittsburgh
18-1, 7-0
1
2
3
F
North Carolina
22
15
23
0
Pitt
25
25
25
3
Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati
Tar Heels Fall at No. 3 Pittsburgh
October 18, 2019 | Volleyball
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Carolina dished out six aces against No. 3 Pitt, but the Tar Heels were unable to overcome the league-leading Panthers, falling in straight sets on Friday evening in the Fitzgerald Field House.
Despite limiting Pitt's two-time ACC Player of the Week, Chinaza Ndee to a .120 attack percentage, the Panthers balanced its offense with Kayla Lund and Layne Van Buskirk who logged nine kills apiece, both hitting at .533 clips.
Parker Austin led Carolina with eight kills throughout the match. Coming off the bench in the third set, Skylar Wine posted four on six swings. Aristea Tontai led the Tar Heels block and serving with five blocks and a trio of aces.
The Panthers improve to 18-1 and maintain a clean sheet in ACC play, 7-0. Carolina slides to 7-10, 4-3 in conference.
The set remained close throughout with 10 tie scores and four lead changes, before the Panthers took the frame, 25-22. Back-to-back aces by Karenna Wurl forced the Panthers to use their first time out at the 11-10 mark. Tontai and Austin posted four kills each in the frame. Pitt used its second timeout following a pair of errors that brought the Tar Heels with one, 22-23. However the Panthers were able to rally for the win.
Tontai dished out a trio of aces to begin the second set. However, the Panthers responded with a 7-1 run to reclaim the lead. Lauren Harrison tacked on three kills in the frame, but the Panthers proved their No. 3 ranking, attacking at a .370 clip in the frame. Pitt close the frame on a second 7-1 run for the 25-15 decision.
The Panthers' momentum continued in the third set, jumping to an 8-2 lead. Coming in mid-way through the set, Wine put a pair of kills on the board to cut Carolina's deficit to six. Block and a kill by Skyy Howard and Carly Peck gave UNC some fire late in the frame. The Panthers called time following back-to-back blocks as Carolina cut its deficit to three. The Tar Heels went on a 6-1 run late in the set and battled through one set point on a fourth kill by wine. However, Zoi Faki secured the 25-23 win.
Carolina Stat Leaders
» Kills: Parker Austin (8)
» Assists: Hunter Atherton (13)
» Digs: Mia Fradenburg (7)
» Total Blocks: Aristea Tontai (5.0)
» Aces: Aristea Tontai (4)
Noteworthy
» Aristea Tontai reset her single-match career-high to four aces. Previously, Tontai had three at Michigan State.
Up Next
The Tar Heels conclude their road trip against Virginia Sunday at 1 p.m. in Charlottesville, Va.
Stay up to date with Carolina Volleyball by following the Tar Heels on Twitter and Instagram.
Despite limiting Pitt's two-time ACC Player of the Week, Chinaza Ndee to a .120 attack percentage, the Panthers balanced its offense with Kayla Lund and Layne Van Buskirk who logged nine kills apiece, both hitting at .533 clips.
Parker Austin led Carolina with eight kills throughout the match. Coming off the bench in the third set, Skylar Wine posted four on six swings. Aristea Tontai led the Tar Heels block and serving with five blocks and a trio of aces.
The Panthers improve to 18-1 and maintain a clean sheet in ACC play, 7-0. Carolina slides to 7-10, 4-3 in conference.
The set remained close throughout with 10 tie scores and four lead changes, before the Panthers took the frame, 25-22. Back-to-back aces by Karenna Wurl forced the Panthers to use their first time out at the 11-10 mark. Tontai and Austin posted four kills each in the frame. Pitt used its second timeout following a pair of errors that brought the Tar Heels with one, 22-23. However the Panthers were able to rally for the win.
Tontai dished out a trio of aces to begin the second set. However, the Panthers responded with a 7-1 run to reclaim the lead. Lauren Harrison tacked on three kills in the frame, but the Panthers proved their No. 3 ranking, attacking at a .370 clip in the frame. Pitt close the frame on a second 7-1 run for the 25-15 decision.
The Panthers' momentum continued in the third set, jumping to an 8-2 lead. Coming in mid-way through the set, Wine put a pair of kills on the board to cut Carolina's deficit to six. Block and a kill by Skyy Howard and Carly Peck gave UNC some fire late in the frame. The Panthers called time following back-to-back blocks as Carolina cut its deficit to three. The Tar Heels went on a 6-1 run late in the set and battled through one set point on a fourth kill by wine. However, Zoi Faki secured the 25-23 win.
Carolina Stat Leaders
» Kills: Parker Austin (8)
» Assists: Hunter Atherton (13)
» Digs: Mia Fradenburg (7)
» Total Blocks: Aristea Tontai (5.0)
» Aces: Aristea Tontai (4)
Noteworthy
» Aristea Tontai reset her single-match career-high to four aces. Previously, Tontai had three at Michigan State.
Up Next
The Tar Heels conclude their road trip against Virginia Sunday at 1 p.m. in Charlottesville, Va.
Stay up to date with Carolina Volleyball by following the Tar Heels on Twitter and Instagram.
Team Stats
NC
UP
Kills
31
40
Errors
19
14
Attempts
96
91
Hitting %
.125
.286
Points
44.0
54.0
Assists
30
39
Aces
6
5
Blocks
7.0
9.0
Game Leaders
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
6
Aces
3
Blocks
5
Kills
4
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Players Mentioned
S
/ VolleyballOH
/ Volleyball
L/DS
/ VolleyballOH
/ VolleyballMB
/ Volleyball
OH/RS
/ VolleyballMB/OPP
/ Volleyball
OH
/ Volleyball
L/DS
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