North Carolina
1-3
Wisconsin
3-1
No. 18 Tar Heels Fall To No. 13 Wisconsin In Three Sets
September 4, 2015 | Volleyball
LOUISVILLE, Ky. --- Victoria McPherson had 12 kills and four blocks but the No. 18 North Carolina volleyball team dropped to 1-3 on the year with a 3-0 (25-22, 25-20, 25-19) loss to No. 13 Wisconsin Friday afternoon at the KFC Yum! Center as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Setters Jordyn Schnabl and Abigail Curry had double-doubles for the Tar Heels, who return to action Saturday afternoon against Minnesota.
"We are still trying to find our way," head coach Joe Sagula said. "We need to mature into a more cohesive group. This level of play forces us into high-level competitive situations and we need to continue to learn and grow."
The opening set was tight throughout as neither team could gain much separation. Carolina went on a 5-0 run behind Curry's strong serving and grabbed an early 8-5 lead. Wisconsin (3-1) quickly tied the score at 9 and the gap was never more than three. Taylor Fricano and Paige Neuenfeldt teamed up for a block late to pull the Heels within one at 23-22, but the Badgers won the last two points to take the set.
Wisconsin raced out to a 9-0 lead in the second set and, despite a late push, UNC was unable to dig out of the hole. The Tar Heels went on a 7-1 run that pulled them within two at 19-17, but that was as close as they would get.
The Badgers completed the sweep by outlasting Carolina in a competitive final set. With the set tied at 15, Wisconsin pulled away and secured a 25-19 win.
Kelli Bates and Haleigh Nelson led the UW attack with 12 and 11 kills, respectively, while Taylor Morey had a match-high 20 digs. The Badgers out-hit Carolina .202 to .109 on the day, while the Tar Heels held a 13.0-6.5 block advantage.
"Our blocking was very good and kept us in the match but we are still searching for consistent points on offense," Sagula said.
Neuenfeldt had seven blocks while Fricano, who was playing against her former team, added five. Tatiana Durr had a team-high 13 digs for Carolina.
"Tati passed well and had a lot of positive plays on defense," Sagula said. "Victoria was very good for us in the middle as well."
"We will be better. We're learning a lot, we just need to mature and work harder."
