University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
8-1
SMU
7-5
Tar Heels Keep Rolling With Sweep of Mustangs
September 17, 2016 | Volleyball
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| Postgame Infographic |
Fort Worth, Texas – No. 8 North Carolina captured its second sweep of the weekend on Saturday, rolling to a 3-0 (25-22, 25-19, 25-21) victory over SMU. The sweep marked the Tar Heels' fifth over the first nine matches, as UNC improved to 8-1, while the 2015 AAC Champion Mustangs slipped to 7-5.
Reigning Player of the Week Taylor Leath lead the Tar Heels with 13 kills in the match, hitting .333, while Julia Scoles just missed a double-double with 10 kills (.333), a team-high nine digs and three aces. Taylor Treacy was efficient on offense as well, slamming eight kills with a .375 clip as the Heels out-hit SMU .333 to .204 as a team.
Abigail Curry and Mariah Evans quarterbacked the Tar Heel offense in a 6-2, as Curry put up 15 assists with two service aces, while Evans dished out 12 assists and eight digs. Libero Sheila Doyle had her hand in several second contacts, tallying eight assists and eight digs.
SMU's offense successfully avoided the talented Carolina block, as UNC stuffed a season-low 6.5 attacks on the afternoon, led by four each from Sydnye Fields and Hayley McCorkle, who also both had four kills.
The Mustangs won the first four points of the match, but back-to-back kills by Treacy helped the Tar Heels tie the score at seven. SMU pushed back in front, 9-7, but a kill and an ace by Scoles tied the score at 11 and an SMU error gave UNC its first lead, 12-11. A block and a kill by Treacy extended Carolina's advantage to 17-14, but the Mustangs raced out of a timeout to win four straight and overtake the lead, 18-17. Tar Heel miscues allowed SMU to further its lead to 21-19, but Scoles and Leath took over down the stretch, combining for three kills and an ace to win the final four points of the set and claim a 25-22 victory.
The second set was tight once again, but Carolina distanced itself midway through the frame to take a 16-12 lead. A block by McCorkle and Fields increased the advantage to 20-15, and for the second set in a row, Leath ended it with a kill to win the second, 25-19.
The Tar Heels raced to a 9-5 lead to open the third, and the early advantage provided more than enough cushion as Carolina finished out the match with a 25-21 win in the third to claim its second sweep of the weekend.
Carolina returns to the court in just a few hours for the finale of the TCU Horned Frog Invitational. The Tar Heels will face the hosts for the second time this season, after defeating TCU at Carmichael Arena in the 2016 home opener two weeks ago. The tournament finale will be streamed live on TCU Frog Vision, with opening serve set for 5 p.m. ET.
