No. 3 Panthers Set for Road Trip to American, Syracuse

PITTSBURGH – The No. 3 Pitt volleyball team (22-2, 12-2 ACC) is set for a midweek non-conference trip to American (16-12, 10-5 Patriot League) Tuesday, followed by the second of a two-match series with Syracuse (16-10, 5-9 ACC), Friday.

WEEKEND SCHEDULE

Match 25 – No. 3 Pitt at American (Tuesday, 3 p.m. ET): Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+)
Match 26 – No. 3 Pitt at Syracuse (Friday, 7 p.m. ET): Live Stats | Watch (ACCNX)
Fans can follow @Pitt_VB on Twitter and Instagram for live updates during all matches.

SISTER ACT

Pitt fifth-year senior right side hitter Chinaza Ndee is the older sister of American junior middle blocker Onuchi Ndee. Tuesday would be the first time the pair meets across the net in NCAA Division I competition, however, Onuchi is inactive due to injury.

PANTHERS STEADY IN THE RANKINGS

For the fourth consecutive week, the Panthers remained at No. 1 in the latest NCAA Volleyball rating percentage index (RPI), as announced Monday.

The rating percentage index, commonly known as the RPI, is a quantity used to rank sports teams based upon a team's wins and losses and its strength of schedule.
Pitt also stayed steady at No. 3 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Top 25 Poll, announced Monday. This week marks Pitt's 21st appearance (10th consecutive) all-time in the Top 5 in program history. The Panthers have appeared in 66 consecutive AVCA Top 25 polls, dating back to the 2018 Preseason Poll.

NO-LOSS NOVEMBER

The Panthers have won 29 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 picked up back-to-back sweeps at Fitzgerald Field House against Syracuse and Boston College, respectively.
First, the Panthers took down Syracuse in straight sets Friday night at Fitzgerald Field House. Following a tight first set (25-23), the Panthers crushed the Orange by scores of 25-15 and 25-13. Pitt had the advantage across the board, in kills (51-30), assists (47-29), service aces (5-1), digs (43-34) blocks (6.5-5.0) and hitting percentage (.345-.121). Outside hitter Leketor Member-Meneh had a near-double-double with nine kills on .444 hitting and a match-high 11 digs.
Next, Pitt earned its fourth consecutive sweep with a win against Boston College on Senior Day at Fitzgerald Field House Sunday afternoon. The Panthers picked up the victory by scores of 25-15, 25-19, 25-23. Pitt had the advantage in kills (46-31), assists (43-27), digs (42-31) and blocks (6.0-5.0) and hitting percentage (.333-.144). The Eagles had more service aces (6-4). Chinaza Ndee, a right side hitter, led Pitt with 13 kills on .417 hitting against the Eagles and added two blocks. Kayla Lund, Leketor Member-Meneh and middle blocker Serena Gray each contributed eight kills.

RECORD WATCH

A quartet of Panthers are rising in the Pitt volleyball career record rankings, following Pitt's most recent match against Boston College (Nov. 7).
Two-time ACC Volleyball Player of the Year Kayla Lund has settled into the program's Top 5 for career kills (1,621, fourth), attacks (3,866, fifth) and service aces (149, fourth). Lund also ranks in the program's Top 10 for digs (ninth, 1,238).
All-American right side Chinaza Ndee ranks second in program history with 446 block assists. She needs 64 more to take sole possession of first place in the record book. Ndee ranks third all-time with 465 total blocks for her career.
Senior middle blocker Sabrina Starks is seventh all-time for Pitt in career block assists (330) and total blocks (370).
Junior setter Lexis Akeo has broken into the program's all-time top 10 with 2,125 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. 14 Georgia Tech. This week, Louisville (23-0, 13-0 ACC), the last remaining unbeaten team in the NCAA, became the first ACC program to earn a No. 1 ranking in the AVCA Poll in conference history and school history.
Miami and Florida State are just outside the Top 25, both receiving votes in the poll.
Pitt holds a 229-93 (.711) record against the current ACC membership.

SCOUTING AMERICAN

The Eagles (16-5, 10-5 Patriot League) have won six of their last seven Patriot League contests to climb to the upper half of the standings, currently in fourth place at 10-5.
For a third week in a row, junior Zeynep Uzen was named the PL Player of the Week on Nov. 2. Uzen has been an absolute force of late, posting a career-high 30 kills in a 3-2 win vs. Loyola Md. and following that up with 28 kills in a 3-1 win vs. Navy.
The Panthers are 10-0 all-time against American. The two teams last met on Oct. 9, 2016 in Pittsburgh, with Pitt winning 3-1.

SCOUTING SYRACUSE

Last week, Syracuse (16-10, 5-9 ACC) split their weekend, falling to Pitt (3-0) and sweeping Virginia (3-0). The Orange will face the Panthers for the second time in seven days when they arrive Friday.
Friday will mark Pitt's 55th all-time meeting against Syracuse, which are the most total contests against an opponent in program history.
Pitt is 41-13 all-time against the Orange. The Panthers' 41 wins are second-most all-time against a single opponent in program history, behind 43 against Duquesne.

UP NEXT

No. 3 Pitt will conclude its ACC road schedule with a rematch at No. 14 Georgia Tech Friday, Nov. 19, before heading to Clemson Sunday, Nov. 21.

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No. 3 Panthers Set for Road Trip to American, Syracuse

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lexis Akeo

Serena Gray

Kayla Lund

Leketor Member-Meneh

Chinaza Ndee

Sabrina Starks

No. 3 Panthers Set for Road Trip to American, Syracuse

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Lexis Akeo

Serena Gray

Kayla Lund

Leketor Member-Meneh

Chinaza Ndee

Sabrina Starks

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