University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
NC State
Defense Leads Carolina Volleyball Past Wolfpack
October 18, 2014 | Volleyball
RALEIGH, N.C. – North Carolina silenced the opposing crowd early and defeated the NC State Wolfpack on the road 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-16) Friday night.
NC State brought in a crowd in conjunction with the Throwback with the Pack event, as over 3,000 fans poured into Reynolds Coliseum to see the match between UNC and NCSU. However, Carolina put on the real show by holding a defensive clinic, out-digging the Wolfpack 61-47 and out-blocking them 12.0-8.0.
The No. 11 Tar Heels held the NC State offense to only .079 attacking percentage by forcing 20 attack errors for the match.
Leigh Andrew led the Tar Heels with 13 kills and nine digs, while Ece Taner had 18 digs to lead the defense. Five Carolina attackers had five kills or more in the match as UNC hit .275 as a team.
“It was great to see our team come out right away and play really well, especially on the defensive end”, said Head Coach Joe Sagula. “The first set was one of the best defensive sets I think we have played all year.”
In set one, NC State jumped to an early lead before the UNC middle blockers spurred a run. After trailing 4-1, Paige Neuenfeldt helped tie the game at 8 with a kill, then Victoria McPherson knocked down a kill to take the lead. Neuenfeldt then served five more points to push the Carolina lead to 14-8 in set one.
A kill down the line from Lauren McAdoo extended the lead to 19-12, then two straight blocks from Neuenfeldt would end set one at 25-15 Tar Heels. Carolina held the Wolfpack to a -.077 hitting percentage in set one, forcing 10 attack errors while only allowing seven kills.
North Carolina and NC State battled throughout set two, with the score tied multiple times early in the game. NCSU tied the score at 3-3 and 6-6 before a kill from Nelson gave UNC the one-point lead. Back-to-back kills from Nelson and Andrew gave Carolina its largest lead of the set at 14-10.
NC State rallied to cut the lead to one, at 17-16. The Tar Heels would maintain the slight advantage until a kill from Neuenfeldt, her third of the set, gave UNC a two-point cushion at 20-18.
Carolina would finish the set off at 25-21 after Chaniel Nelson dropped a tip short in front of the NC State defender. Nelson had four kills and McAdoo chipped in two kills in the frame.
“I thought we let up a little at times in set two and I really urged the team to keep focused. We did not want NC State to build any momentum. They are an energetic team playing at home in front of a big crowd and we wanted to serve tough, stay aggressive and keep them on their heels”, said Sagula.
The Tar Heels responded in the third set by stringing together a 9-1 run to go up 17-9 in game three. Andrew had four kills in the run that put set three out of reach. Victoria McPherson had three kills and one block in the third frame as UNC cruised to a 25-16 win.
“Victoria got blocked some in the second set and I asked her to step up and dominate in the third set. I thought she did that, she played very well. Both of our middles, Paige and Victoria, had great matches."
"This was a great win to travel here and not let this crowd or opponent affect us. We played our game for most of the match and came away with the win”, said Sagula.
McPherson finished with nine kills and five blocks. Neuenfeldt had nine kills, six blocks, and three digs. Heather Gearhart had a season-high nine digs, while Lauren McAdoo chipped in five kills and seven digs.
The Tar Heels (14-2, 5-1 ACC) will stay in the Triangle and face No. 21 Duke on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The match will be broadcast live on ESPNU and live stats will be available through goduke.com.
