No. 9 Pitt Volleyball Tops High Point, 3-1

Saturday, September 15

Pittsburgh, Pa.

7 PM EST

Pitt

11-0

High Point

4-7

High Point

Pitt

Women's Volleyball Team, Layne Van Buskirk

Photo by: Jeffrey Gamza/Pitt Athletics

No. 9 Pitt Volleyball Tops High Point, 3-1

9/15/2018 10:36:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Box Score Season Stats

Panthers Improve to 11-0, Extending Best Start Since 1983

PITTSBURGH – Behind double-figure kills from three Panthers, the No. 9 University of Pittsburgh volleyball team improved to 11-0 with a 3-1 defeat of High Point (4-7) Saturday evening at Fitzgerald Field House.

After winning the first two sets, 25-21 and 25-19, Pitt conceded the third set to HPU, 25-18, before claiming the final frame, 25-22. With the win, the Panthers extended their best start to a season since beginning the 1983 campaign at 12-0.

For the sixth consecutive match, sophomore outside hitter Kayla Lund paced Pitt in kills, notching 14. She was one dig away from a double-double, posting nine, and tied a career high with four service aces. Junior middle hitter Layne Van Buskirk followed with a season-high 13 kills on a match-best .619 attack percentage, and redshirt junior outside hitter Stephanie Williams had 11 kills to go along with five digs.

Senior setter Kamalani Akeo posted her second double-double of the season with 32 assists and 10 digs. Redshirt senior libero Angela Seman picked up 17 digs to lead the Panthers.

Pitt had the advantage on offense, hitting .231 to High Point's .167. The Panthers had three team blocks compared to HPU's seven, but Pitt had the upper hand in digs, 54-47.

Set One: No. 9 Pitt 25, High Point 21

The first set was closely matched, with seven ties and two lead changes. Following a 5-5 tie, a 5-2 run by Pitt gave the Panthers a 10-7 lead. High Point came back to level out the set at 11, but after that, Pitt re-gained momentum and did not surrender the lead for the remainder of the frame. A block by middle hitter Sabrina Starks and setter Kylee Levers put Pitt ahead 22-17, and Lund ended the set with a service ace to seal it, 25-21.

Set Two: No. 9 Pitt 25, High Point 19

Despite not leading until the score read 17-16, the second set was the Panthers' best of the day on the offensive side. Pitt hit .467 in the stanza, with 15 kills on 30 attempts with one error. High Point was charged with serving out of rotation when leading 16-15, which sparked a 9-0 Pitt run to make it 23-16 for the Panthers. Pitt kept its distance for the remainder of the set, ending on a Van Buskirk kill.

Set Three: High Point, 25, No. 9 Pitt 18

For the second consecutive match, Pitt struggled in the third set, hitting .108 with 11 kills on 37 attempts with seven errors. The set saw eight ties with three lead changes, as High Point hit .351 with 16 kills. Starks and Williams had three kills apiece to lead the Panthers in the frame.

Set Four: No. 9 Pitt 25, High Point 22

The Panthers made adjustments in the fourth set, opening with a 5-1 advantage that ended with a Seman service ace. Although High Point kept it close for the majority of the frame, tying it up as late as 22-22, Pitt closed the match on a 4-0 run with all points scored by Lund: two kills and two service aces.

UP NEXT
The No. 9 Panthers will begin ACC play Wednesday, Sept. 19, against Virginia at Fitzgerald Field House. The match will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra, available on the WatchESPN app.

#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook