
Photo by: Alex Mowrey/Pitt Athletics
Pitt Heads South for Contests with Florida State, Miami
10/5/2017 6:19:00 PM | Volleyball
Panthers Enter Weekend Riding Eight-Match Win-Streak
Match Notes
Friday vs. Florida State: Live Stats | ACC Network Extra
Sunday vs. Miami: Live Stats | ACC Network Extra
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh volleyball team (11-4, 4-0 ACC) returns to the road this weekend as the Panthers continue ACC play at Florida State (9-4, 3-2 ACC) and Miami (9-2, 3-2 ACC) in the Sunshine State.
THE SCHEDULE
THE SERIES
SCOUTING FLORIDA STATE
SCOUTING MIAMI
LAST TIME OUT
LOOKING AHEAD
GOING STREAKING
PITT IN THE ACC
PANTHERS TAKING SETS
WILLIAMS IN DOUBLE-DIGITS
MAKING HER MARK
PICKING UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF
HITTING 100
MILESTONE/RECORD BOOK WATCH
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Friday vs. Florida State: Live Stats | ACC Network Extra
Sunday vs. Miami: Live Stats | ACC Network Extra
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh volleyball team (11-4, 4-0 ACC) returns to the road this weekend as the Panthers continue ACC play at Florida State (9-4, 3-2 ACC) and Miami (9-2, 3-2 ACC) in the Sunshine State.
THE SCHEDULE
- Pitt will face off against the Seminoles Friday, Oct. 6 at 6:30 p.m. in Tully Gym in Tallahassee, Fla. before closing out the weekend against the Hurricanes Sunday, Oct. 8 in Coral Gables. First serve is slated for 12 p.m.
THE SERIES
- Pitt and Florida State square off for the 10th time in program history, with the Panthers trailing in the all-time series 5-4. In last year's meeting in Tallahassee, Fla., Pitt fell to the then-ranked Seminoles 3-1.
- The Panthers will also face Miami for the 10th time in program, holding a one-match lead over the Hurricanes in the all-time series, 5-4. Pitt's last meeting against Miami ended in a four-set win for the Panthers.
SCOUTING FLORIDA STATE
- Florida State enters the weekend with a 9-4 overall record and a 3-2 record in ACC play.
- The Seminoles were previously ranked but fell out of the top 25 after falling in back-to-back matches against conference foes Louisville and Miami last weekend.
- Florida State swept Miami in a Wednesday night tilt in their most recent action.
- Milica Kubura, who holds leads the Seminoles in kills, kills/set and hitting percentage, will lead Florida State's attack.
SCOUTING MIAMI
- Miami enters the weekend with a 9-2 record and a 3-2 mark in conference play.
- The Hurricanes dropped their last two matches as they were swept by the Seminoles Wednesday evening and fell to Louisville in three last Sunday.
- Miami will rely on Olga Strantzali to lead the offense against the Panthers as she leads the ACC with 4.93 per set.
LAST TIME OUT
- Pitt moved to 4-0 in conference play after sweeping both Virginia and Virginia Tech at the Fitzgerald Field House.
- The Panthers were dominate on offense against Virginia, hitting .410 on the match, while tallying 52 kills. The squad put up 51 assists on the night, as well as 42 digs. Sophomore Nika Markovic earned her third double-double of the season after tallying 17 kills to mark her eighth match in double-digits and fifth straight, while posting a team-leading 14 digs.
- Pitt had a solid day against Virginia Tech as the Panthers hit .303 and tallied 40 kills on offense, while holding the Hokies to a .032 clip.
- Redshirt sophomore Stephanie Williams led Pitt's attack with 11 kills, while Markovic added 10 and hit .381.
LOOKING AHEAD
- Pitt will remain on the road next weekend as the squad heads to Syracuse and Boston College. The Panthers take on the Orange Friday, Oct 13 at 1:30 p.m. and Eagles Sunday, Oct 15 at 1 p.m.
GOING STREAKING
- The Panthers are currently on an eight-match win streak dating back to Sept. 9 as Pitt defeated East Tennessee State in its final game at the WKU Invitational.
- During that span, the Panthers have gone undefeated in conference play, 4-0.
PITT IN THE ACC
- Pitt currently sits atop of the ACC with a 4-0 record in conference play.
- NC State is the only other team undefeated in the ACC as they also hold a 4-0 record.
- The Panthers currently lead the conference in hitting percentage, hitting at a .268 clip and ranks second in kills with 13.91 per set.
PANTHERS TAKING SETS
- In the last eight matches, Pitt has dropped just three sets in 27 total played.
- On the season, the Panthers have dropped just 17 sets out of 54 total.
- The squad has swept seven opponents, defeated three in four sets and one in five.
WILLIAMS IN DOUBLE-DIGITS
- Redshirt sophomore Stephanie Williams has earned double-digit kills in eight straight matches dating back to the Panthers contest against East Tennessee State Sept. 9.
- She now has 11 matches where she's had 10-plus kills and three where she has recorded double-doubles.
- On the season Williams has tallied 166 kills, including 3.13 per set, while hitting at a .277 clip.
MAKING HER MARK
- One of three international products on the roster, sophomore Nika Markovic has had a major impact on the Panthers' success since her arrival in 2016.
- So far this season, the right side hitter has dominated both sides of the ball for Pitt. She has tallied 175 kills, 3.89 per set, to lead the team and rank third in the ACC. Markovic also boasts 110 digs, 15 aces and 42 blocks.
- The Slovenian has recorded three double-doubles this season and has hit in double-digits eight times this season.
- Last season, the Braslovce, Slovenia native was sidelined in early October due to foot surgery for three games. She was also limited in three more contests before being given the full go on Oct. 28 against NC State.
- The team fell into a lull in her absence, producing a 2-4 record. After her return, Pitt picked up its play, rattling off four straight wins, including an upset at home against No. 8 North Carolina.
- In the upset over the Tar Heels, Markovic had a career-high 19 kills, which led the Panthers. She also produced 10 kills in the win over NC State that same weekend, and tallied 19 digs over the two games. She was honored as the ACC Freshman of the Week for her efforts.
- Markovic ended her freshman campaign with 233 kills and a .266 hitting percentage. She also racked up 39 aces, second best on the team.
PICKING UP WHERE SHE LEFT OFF
- In 2016 as a freshman, Layne Van Buskirk was one of the most efficient attackers for Pitt and the now-sophomore is picking up right where she left off.
- The Windsor, Ontario native is hitting .347 for the Panthers, while ranking seventh in the ACC.
- Last season as a newcomer, she tallied a .345 hitting percentage, which ranked second on the Pitt squad. As the lone freshman in the top 10 of the category, Van Buskirk's clip ranked sixth in the ACC.
HITTING 100
- Head coach Dan Fisher earned his 100th win at Pitt with a 3-1 victory over Syracuse.
- Fisher, who is in his fifth season with the Panthers, owns a 103-42 (.710) record with the University, while boasting 180 career wins as a head coach.
MILESTONE/RECORD BOOK WATCH
- Junior setter Kamalani Akeo currently sits seventh in career assists with 2,476. She will look to climb further throughout the season, as she is 640 assists away from sixth place (3,116).
- Senior Mariah Bell will look to break into the top 10 in career kills and aces in 2017. Bell is 190 kills away from moving into the top 10 in the category (1,071) and just 119 away from hitting 1,000 mark. She also needs just eight aces to enter the record book.
- With her 33 digs at the Dayton Invitational, Angela Seman broke into the career digs category of the record book. The redshirt junior now boasts 1,201 digs, good for eighth best in program history. She is now just 65 away from moving into seventh (1,266).
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