No. 10 Pitt Volleyball Set for Fall Finale at Fitzgerald Field House

Friday, October 23

Pittsburgh, Pa.

7 PM ET

Pitt

Louisville

No. 10 Pitt Volleyball Set for Fall Finale at Fitzgerald Field House

10/22/2020 10:01:00 AM | Volleyball

Match Notes Watch Friday: ACCNX Watch Sunday: ACCN Live Stats

Panthers Set for Second Consecutive AVCA Top 10 Opponent

PITTSBURGH – To complete its 2020 fall schedule, the 10th-ranked University of Pittsburgh volleyball team (3-3, 3-3 ACC) will host two AVCA Top 10 matchups against No. 6 Louisville (4-1, 4-1 ACC), set for Friday and Sunday at Fitzgerald Field House.

MATCH SCHEDULE / HOW TO FOLLOW

MATCH 1: Friday, Oct. 23 | 7 p.m. ET | Pittsburgh, Pa. | Watch: ACCNX | Live Stats
MATCH 2: Sunday, Oct. 25 | 3:30 p.m. ET | Pittsburgh, Pa. | Watch: ACCN| Live Stats
Fans can follow @Pitt_VB on Twitter and Instagram for live updates.

ATTENDANCE AT FITZGERALD FIELD HOUSE

Due to attendance restrictions at Fitzgerald Field House, there will be no public ticket sales for the final two matches of the 2020 fall season for the University of Pittsburgh volleyball team. The recent announcement by the Governor's office expanding attendance figures at indoor venues will allow Pitt Volleyball to host a limited number of student-athlete and University guests for this weekend's games against Louisville. All guests must be on the official pass list to gain entry and will receive correspondence from Pitt Athletics regarding protocols surrounding attendance at Fitzgerald Field House.
The matches are set for Friday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 3:30 p.m. at Fitzgerald Field House. Friday's game is available on ACC Network Extra, while the fall season finale Sunday will be broadcast on the ACC Network.

STEEL PANTHERS

Pitt will debut its "Steel City" anthracite alternate uniforms Friday night against Louisville.

A WIN ON FRIDAY WOULD…

Extend Pitt's win streak at Fitzgerald Field House to 37 matches. Pitt's last loss at the Field House was Oct. 22, 2017, vs. NC State.
Extend Pitt's win streak against AVCA Top 10 opponents to two matches. Last time out, the Panthers defeated No. 5 Notre Dame, 3-1, Sunday afternoon.
Improve Pitt's record against AVCA Top 25 opponents under eighth-year head coach Dan Fisher to 15-18.
Improve Pitt's all-time record against AVCA Top 10 opponents to 6-50. Since September 2019, the Panthers are 3-2 when facing the AVCA Top 10.
Extend the Panthers' win streak against Louisville to four matches. Pitt's last loss to the Cardinals came Oct. 27, 2017, in Louisville (3-2).
Extend Pitt's win streak when playing at home against Louisville to five matches. The Panthers' last loss against the Cardinals at Fitzgerald Field House came Sept. 30, 2012 (3-0).
Improve Pitt's all-time record against Notre Dame to 13-14.

PITT IN THE POLL

Following a 1-1 weekend on the road at No. 5 Notre Dame, Pitt stayed at No. 10 in the most recent AVCA Coaches Poll, released Wednesday.
The Panthers have been ranked in the poll for 36 consecutive weeks, dating back to the 2018 Preseason Poll.

AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS

The Panthers are 14-18 (.438) against AVCA Top 25 opponents under eighth-year head coach Dan Fisher. Pitt is 4-6 (.400) against the AVCA Top 10 under Fisher.
When both teams are ranked, Pitt is 9-10 (.474) all-time in those contests.

LUND AT THE TOP

As of matches played through Oct. 18, Pitt senior captain Kayla Lund leads the ACC in both kills per set (4.71) and points per set (5.33).
The outside hitter ranks seventh and sixth nationally in those respective categories.
Against Boston College (Oct. 9), Lund posted a career-best 25 kills in a four-set win over the Eagles. She is the first Panther to record 25 or more kills in a match since Nika Markovic had 26 against WKU on Sept. 8, 2017.
Lund has recorded two matches this season with 20 or more kills and has led the Panthers in kills in all but two matches this season.

LAST TIME OUT (AT NO. 5 NOTRE DAME, OCT. 16-18)

Pitt (3-3) split a pair of road matches at No. 5 Notre Dame (4-1) Friday and Sunday in Notre Dame, Ind. The Fighting Irish claimed the first meeting, 3-2, before the Panthers handed ND its first loss of the season Sunday, 3-1.
MATCH 1 (Oct. 16): Despite gaining a 2-0 advantage on No. 5 Notre Dame, No. 10 Pitt fell short of an upset in five sets Friday night. The Panthers went up 2-0 by scores of 25-22 and 25-17, but dropped the next three, 21-25, 20-25 and 17-15. Senior captain outside hitter Kayla Lund produced a double-double with a match-high 22 kills and 16 digs. Classmate and co-captain Chinaza Ndee had 15 kills to go along with four blocks.
MATCH 2 (Oct. 18): Senior captains Kayla Lund and Chinaza Ndee combined for nearly 50 percent of the Panthers' kill output as 10th-ranked Pitt handed No. 5 Notre Dame its first loss of the 2020 season, 3-1, Sunday afternoon. After falling in five sets to the Fighting Irish Friday night, Pitt earned the rematch victory by scores of 23-25, 25-19, 25-23, 25-17. The win tied Pitt's second-highest ranked victory in program history, after defeating No. 4 Penn State in 2019. The Panthers had a season-best 19.0 team blocks in the upset. Junior middle blocker Sabrina Starks led Pitt with a season-best nine, while sophomore middle blocker Chiamaka Nwokolo contributed a career-best eight and Ndee had a season-best seven.

SCOUTING NO. 6 LOUISVILLE

The Cardinals (4-1) have not lost since a season-opening sweep at the hands of Notre Dame (Sept. 25). The rematch between Louisville and the Fighting Irish, set for the following day, was postponed due to COVID-19 protocols.
Since their loss, over four matches, the Cardinals have dropped just one set, coming against Boston College (Oct. 3).
Louisville was picked second (175 points) in the Preseason ACC Coaches Poll, behind Pitt (192 points). The Cardinals are in a five-team pod with Pitt, Louisville, Syracuse and Boston College.
Redshirt sophomore opposite hitter Aiko Jones leads the Cardinals with 3.69 kills per set, followed by freshman outside hitter Anna DeBeer with 3.00.
Through Oct. 18 matches, Louisville leads the ACC in blocks per set (3.25), kills per set (14.50) and opponent hitting percentage (.131). Amaya Tillman leads the league with 2.13 blocks per set.

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