Final ACC Road Trip Ahead for No. 3 Pitt Volleyball

PITTSBURGH – The final ACC road trip of the 2021 season is ahead for the No. 3 Pitt volleyball team (24-2, 13-2 ACC).

The Panthers will look to avenge one of their two losses when they visit No. 13 Georgia Tech (21-4, 12-3 ACC) Friday at 4 p.m. ET at O'Keefe Gymnasium in Atlanta, Ga., before traveling to Clemson (12-15, 3-12 ACC) for their road finale Sunday at 1 p.m. ET at Jervey Gym.

WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Match 27 – No. 3 Pitt at No. 13 Georgia Tech (Friday, 4 p.m. ET): Live Stats | ACC Network
Match 28 – No. 3 Pitt at Clemson (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET): Live Stats | ACCNX
Fans can follow @Pitt_VB on Twitter and Instagram for live updates during all matches.

PANTHERS REMAIN IN TOP 3

Despite dropping one spot to No. 2 in the latest NCAA Volleyball rating percentage index (RPI), the Panthers are still ranked in the Top 3 in both major volleyball rankings. Pitt was No. 1 in the RPI for the past four weeks. The RPI is a quantity used to rank sports teams based upon a team's wins and losses and its strength of schedule.

Pitt stayed steady at No. 3 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 Poll, announced Monday. This week marks Pitt's 22nd appearance (11th consecutive) all-time in the Top 5 in program history. The Panthers have appeared in 67 consecutive AVCA Top 25 polls, dating back to the 2018 Preseason Poll.

NO-LOSS NOVEMBER

The Panthers have won 31 consecutive matches when playing during the month of November, marking a streak dating back to a 3-0 loss at Fitzgerald Field House against Duke on Nov. 13, 2016.

LAST TIME OUT

Pitt earned two wins on the road last week at American (Nov. 9) and Syracuse (Nov. 12), respectively.
First, in their non-conference finale, the Panthers swept American in a midweek matinee Tuesday at Bender Arena. Pitt dominated from start to finish, taking down the Eagles by scores of 25-7, 25-11, 25-16. Pitt had the upper hand across the board, in kills (43-19), assists (41-19), service aces (7-0), digs (39-25), blocks (9.0-5.0) and hitting percentage (.410-.000). Five Panthers produced five or more kills. Middle blocker Serena Gray led the way with nine on .692 hitting with zero errors on 13 attempts. Outside hitters Valeria Vazquez Gomez and Leketor Member-Meneh each had eight kills. Chinaza Ndee and Jordan Lockwood each had five from the right side.
Next, outside hitter Leketor Member-Meneh tied a career high with 23 kills as Pitt survived a five-set battle at the Women's Building against Syracuse Friday night. The Panthers surrendered a 2-0 lead (25-17, 25-18) when the Orange stormed back to win the third and fourth frames (25-16, 25-22). Pitt held on for the win in the fifth, 15-9. Pitt had advantages in kills (67-57), assists (63-53), service aces (6-3) and hitting percentage (.269-.227). Syracuse had more digs (68-58) and blocks (11.0-9.0). Member-Meneh's 23 kills are the most by a Panther in a single match this season. She hit .362 against the Orange and picked up nine digs for a near double-double.

RECORD WATCH

A quartet of Panthers are rising in the Pitt volleyball career record rankings, following Pitt's most recent match against Syracuse (Nov. 12).
Two-time ACC Volleyball Player of the Year Kayla Lund has settled into the program's Top 5 for career kills (1,635, fourth), attacks (3,904, fifth) and service aces (149, fourth). Lund also ranks in the program's Top 10 for digs (ninth, 1,251).
All-American right side Chinaza Ndee ranks second in program history with 448 block assists. She needs 62 more to take sole possession of first place in the record book. Ndee ranks third all-time with 469 total blocks for her career.
Senior middle blocker Sabrina Starks is seventh all-time for Pitt in career block assists (334) and total blocks (374).
Junior setter Lexis Akeo has broken into the program's all-time top 10 with 2,159 career assists. She notched the 2,000th assist of her career during the Panther's win at Florida State (Oct. 17).

A LOOK AROUND THE ACC

The ACC has three teams in the latest AVCA Top 25 poll, including No. 1 Louisville, No. 3 Pitt and No. 13 Georgia Tech. Miami and Florida State are just outside the Top 25, both receiving votes in the poll.
Pitt holds a 230-93 (.712) all-time record against the current ACC membership, and are 132-35 (.790) against ACC opponents under ninth-year head coach Dan Fisher.

PITT VS. THE AVCA TOP 25

The Panthers are 4-2 against Top 25 opponents so far this season, defeating No. 23 Rice, No. 18 Washington State, No. 9 Baylor and No. 12 BYU, with their only losses of the season coming at the hands of No. 18 Georgia Tech (Oct. 10) and No. 2 Louisville (Oct. 24).
Pitt holds an 8-5 (.615) record in its last 13 meetings against AVCA Top 25 opponents.
When both teams are ranked in the Top 25, the Panthers are 18-14 (.563) all-time in those meetings.
Pitt is 4-22 (.154) all-time when facing the Top 5, but the Panthers are 3-3 (.500) in their last five meetings against the Top 5.
The Panthers are 23-22 (.511) against American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 opponents under ninth-year head coach Dan Fisher (2013-present).

SCOUTING NO. 13 GEORGIA TECH

Most recently, a sweep at the hands of No. 1 Louisville (Nov. 12) snapped a 10-match win streak for No. 13 Georgia Tech (21-4, 12-3 ACC). It was the Yellow Jackets' second sweep loss of the season – both coming against the Cardinals.
The Yellow Jackets lead the NCAA in kills per set (15.07) and assists per set (13.74). They rank second in the ACC in hitting percentage (.295) and are third in digs per set (14.96).
Setter Matti McKissock leads the ACC with 11.65 assists per set while Julia Bergman (4.72) and Mariana Brambilla (4.12) are first and third in the league in kills per set.
Pitt is looking to avenge an Oct. 10 five-set loss at home to the Yellow Jackets. The Panthers hold a 10-2 advantage in the all-time series and are 4-0 against Georgia Tech when competing on the road.

SCOUTING CLEMSON

Last week, Clemson (12-15, 3-12 ACC) earned a 3-1 non-conference victory against Southern Miss (Nov. 10) before dropping a road match at Miami (Nov. 13), 3-1.
McKenna Slavik is sixth in the ACC with 9.67 assists per set. Kaylee Martin leads the Tigers with 3.25 kills per frame.
Pitt has won 10 consecutive matches in the series against Clemson and are 10-1 all-time against the Tigers. The Panthers' only loss was in the first meeting, Aug. 30, 1997, 3-1. Pitt is 5-0 all-time when competing on the road against Clemson.

UP NEXT

The third-ranked Panthers will conclude the regular season with a highly anticipated rematch against unbeaten No. 1 Louisville, set for Wednesday, Nov. 24, at 5 p.m. ET at Fitzgerald Field House.

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Final ACC Road Trip Ahead for No. 3 Pitt Volleyball

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lexis Akeo

Serena Gray

Jordan Lockwood

Kayla Lund

Leketor Member-Meneh

Chinaza Ndee

Sabrina Starks

Valeria Vazquez Gomez

Final ACC Road Trip Ahead for No. 3 Pitt Volleyball

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lexis Akeo

Serena Gray

Jordan Lockwood

Kayla Lund

Leketor Member-Meneh

Chinaza Ndee

Sabrina Starks

Valeria Vazquez Gomez

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