No. 10 Pitt to Preview NCAA Volleyball Championship Site

PITTSBURGH – The No. 10 Pitt volleyball team will preview the site of the 2019 NCAA Division I Volleyball Championship when it kicks off the ChampYinz Invitational at PPG Paints Arena Friday at 8 p.m. against Ohio State.

Following the bout with the Buckeyes, Pitt will move back to Fitzgerald Field House for Saturday matches against Green Bay (1 p.m.) and Duquesne (8 p.m.)

HOW TO FOLLOW

Ohio State vs. No. 10 Pitt (Friday, 8 p.m., PPG Paints Arena)
Green Bay at No. 10 Pitt (Saturday, 1 p.m. Fitzgerald Field House)
Duquesne at No. 10 Pitt (Saturday, 8 p.m., Fitzgerald Field House)
Fans can follow along during all matches with live updates on Twitter @Pitt_VB.

RANKING THE PANTHERS

Pitt cracked the American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 10 for Week 1, moving up two spots to No. 10, as announced Monday afternoon.
The ranking marks the 12th week in program history that Pitt has landed among the Top 10 programs in the country.
Pitt was ranked in the Top 10 for 11 consecutive weeks in 2018, from Sept. 10-Nov. 19.
The Panthers are 20-1 all-time when ranked inside the Top 10, and 6-0 when ranked No. 10.
Pitt entered the 2019 season having earned its highest preseason ranking in program history, coming in at No. 12 in the initial American Volleyball Coaches Association poll, released prior to the season.

PITT SWEEPS ACC VOLLEYBALL WEEKLY HONORS

Junior outside hitter Kayla Lund and freshman setter Lexis Akeo picked up the first 2019 ACC weekly awards for No. 10 Pitt, as announced by the conference Tuesday afternoon.
Lund was named the league's Player of the Week for the fourth time in her career, making her the most decorated ACC weekly award winner in program history. She earned Player of the Week honors thrice in 2018 and was named the conference's Freshman of the Week four times in 2017.
The Pasadena, Calif., native was named MVP of the Panther Challenge after hitting .480 over Pitt's nine sets played. She recorded a weekend-high percentage of .625 against Cleveland State with 11 kills on 16 attempts with just one error. She led Pitt with 3.22 kills per set on the weekend, and added 2.33 digs, 0.56 assists, 0.33 service aces and 0.22 blocks per frame.
Akeo is the program's first Freshman of the Week since Lund earned the accolades on Nov. 20, 2017. The rookie started all three matches and led the Panthers with 10.44 assists per set for the weekend. Against Cincinnati, Akeo recorded three kills on three attempts with zero errors for an efficient 1.000 hitting percentage. The Kapolei, Hawaii, native picked up 1.22 digs, 0.33 blocks and 0.22 service aces per set.

LAST TIME OUT

No. 10 Pitt earned a three-match weekend sweep to start the 2019 season, winning the Panther Challenge Saturday night at Fitzgerald Field House.
The Panthers took down Cleveland State, Cincinnati and South Carolina in straight sets. The Bearcats and Gamecocks were each receiving votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Poll.
Four Panthers recorded averages of three kills per set or more, including junior outside hitter Kayla Lund (3.22), redshirt senior outside hitter Stephanie Williams (3.11) and senior middle blocker Layne Van Buskirk (3.00).

SCOUTING OHIO STATE

Ohio State comes into the ChampYinz Invitational with a record of 2-1 after a second-place finish at the Sports Imports D.C. Koehl Classic in Columbus, Ohio.
Sophomore outside hitter Mia Grunze had a career weekend, recording a career-high 30 kills and 30.5 points against Texas Tech. She was selected to the All-Tournament Team for Ohio State.
Ohio State features eight new Buckeyes on its 2019 roster, including six freshmen and two transfers.
Pitt has an all-time record of 9-12 against the Buckeyes, with Ohio State winning the last two matches. They most recently played in 2010. Pitt's last win against OSU came in 1999 via forfeit.

SCOUTING GREEN BAY

Led by 2018 Horizon League Player of the Year junior outside hitter Taylor Wolf and Setter of the Year senior setter Maddie Yoss, Green Bay comes into this weekend with a perfect record of 4-0.
Yoss contributed 56 assists in their win against Indiana State on Saturday, giving her 4,012 assists total for her career. She is just the second player in program history to record 4K assists.
Senior libero Emily Lautenschlager figures to be a key factor this year in the back-row of a defense that lost two defensive specialists. She totaled 35 digs in Green Bay's first four matches.
Pitt holds an all-time record of 2-0 against Green Bay, with their last victory coming in straight sets back in 2000.

SCOUTING DUQUESNE

Duquesne currently owns a record of 2-1, with wins over Charleston Southern and North Florida.
Senior middle hitter Liz Wayne made the UNCW Hampton Inns Invitational All-Tournament Team with 30 kills over three matches with a .423 hitting percentage, including a career-high 14 kills against Charleston Southern.
The Dukes return both of their 2018 Atlantic 10 postseason honorees in second team all-conference member senior setter Dani Suiter and all-rookie selection outside hitter Summer Slade.
The Atlantic 10 Preseason Coaches' Poll picked Duquesne to finish sixth in the conference, earning 41 points. The poll was voted on by the 10 head coaches in the conference.
The Dukes will start the ChampYinz Invitational with the first ever volleyball match in PPG Paints Arena on Friday against Green Bay.
Pitt boasts a record of 42-5 all-time against Duquesne, with a current streak of two straight wins. They most recently played each other in 2015, with Pitt winning in straight sets. Pitt's home/away split against Duquesne is impressive, with a 21-2 record at home and a 17-3 record away.

UP NEXT

Fitzgerald Field House will play host to a Top-10 tilt as the No. 9 Oregon Ducks visit No. 10 Pitt Wednesday, Sept. 11, at 8 p.m. ET on ESPNU.

PITT VOLLEYBALL TICKETS

Flex season ticket packages as well as single-match and group tickets for the 2019 volleyball season are now on sale and can be purchased by calling the Panthers' Ticket Office at (800) 643-PITT (7488) or online at PittsburghPanthers.com.

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No. 10 Pitt to Preview NCAA Volleyball Championship Site

Players Mentioned

Lexis Akeo

Kayla Lund

Layne Van Buskirk

Stephanie Williams

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