No. 4 Panthers Back on the Road for Comfort Inn-vitational

PITTSBURGH – The No. 4 Pitt volleyball team (8-0, 0-0 ACC) will look to continue its hot start to the season when it travels to Morehead, Ky., for the Comfort Inn-vitational, hosted by Morehead State Friday and Saturday at Johnson Arena.

The Panthers will take on Marshall (3-7, 0-0 C-USA) on a neutral court Friday at 2 p.m. before facing the host Eagle Saturday at 2 p.m. Saturday's match against Morehead State (3-5, 0-0 OVC) will be streamed on ESPN+.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Match 9 – No. 4 Pitt vs. Marshall (Friday, 2 p.m. ET): Live Stats
Match 10 – No. 4 Pitt at Morehead State (Saturday, 2 p.m. ET): Live Stats | Watch (ESPN+)
Fans can follow @Pitt_VB on Twitter and Instagram for live updates during all matches.

LAST TIME OUT

No. 4 Pitt swept the competition at its home-opening tournament, going 3-0 at the Panther Challenge at Fitzgerald Field House Sept. 10-11. The Panthers picked up three wins against three teams that competed at the 2020 NCAA Tournament, including No. 12 BYU (Sept. 10, 3-1).
Pitt swept High Point to open the Panther Challenge at Fitzgerald Field House Friday morning. The Panthers defeated the Panthers by scores of 25-17, 25-17, 25-23. Right side hitter Chinaza Ndee led Pitt with 12 kills on .500 hitting. Outside Kayla Lund and middle blocker Chiamaka Nwokolo contributed seven kills apiece.
Next, the Panthers handed No. 12 BYU its first loss of the season with a 3-1 victory at Fitzgerald Field House Friday night. The Panthers earned the win by scores of 25-21, 21-25, 25-20, 26-24. The victory marked Pitt's fourth win against a Top 25 opponent this season. Ndee had a match-high 17 kills on .359 hitting and added two blocks. Lund had 15 kills, two service aces and nine digs.
Pitt put an exclamation point on the end of the Panther Challenge with a sweep of Bowling Green at Fitzgerald Field House Saturday night. The win marked the Panthers' third sweep of the season, earning the win by scores of 25-19, 25-17, 25-16. Four Panthers hit for .500 or better on the night, including Nwokolo (.571, five kills), middle blocker Serena Gray (.500, seven kills), outside hitter Valeria Vazquez Gomez (.500, seven kills) and Lund (.500, five kills).

NDEE NAMED ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Fifth-year senior right side hitter Chinaza Ndee was named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Week, as announced Tuesday.
Ndee's honors are her first of the season and the fourth of her career. The Houston, Texas, native last earned the honors for the week of March 30, 2021. She is the second Panther to earn the accolades this season, following classmate Kayla Lund for the week of Sept. 7.
Ndee earned the honors following her efforts to lead the Panthers to a 3-0 weekend at the Panther Challenge at Fitzgerald Field House (Sept. 10-11). She notched 3.90 kills per set while hitting .367 over the three matches, which included a 3-1 win over No. 12 BYU (Sept. 10). It was the Panthers' fourth win over a Top 25 opponent so far this season.
The right side hitter totaled 39 kills over the three matches played, including a season-best 17 kills against the Cougars on .359 hitting. She hit .500 against High Point with 12 kills to open the tournament (Sept. 10) and posted three blocks against Bowling Green (Sept. 11).

PITT IN THE AVCA POLL

The Panthers remained at No. 4 in the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Preseason Poll, as announced Monday. This week marks Pitt's 13th appearance in the Top 5 in program history.
The Panthers have appeared in 58 consecutive AVCA Top 25 polls, dating back to the 2018 Preseason Poll.

SCOUTING MARSHALL

The Thundering Herd leads the nation in total blocks with 124.0. It ranks second in total digs (710) and total attacks (1,581).
Graduate middle blocker Destiny Leon is second in the NCAA with 57 blocks so far this season. Senior libero ranks second in the nation with 210 digs, and outside hitter Ciara DeBell is third nationally with 484 total attacks.
The Herd is 1-6 in its last seven outings. Most recently, Marshall defeated Memphis, 3-2, at the Southeast Missouri State Invitational Saturday night.
The Panthers are 5-1 all-time against the Herd, with Marshall winning the most recent meeting, 3-0, on Sept. 9, 2006, in Pittsburgh.

SCOUTING MOREHEAD STATE

Morehead State (3-5, 0-0 OVC) will host Marshall and Toledo Thursday and Friday, respectively, before taking on the Panthers Saturday. The Eagles are looking to snap a two-match slump after dropping back-to-back contests to No. 23 Tennessee Friday and Sunday.
Outside hitter Olivia Lohmeier ranks second in the OVC and 16th in the nation with 4.66 kills per set. As a team, the Eagles are third in their conference with 16.41 digs per set.
Pitt and Morehead State have met twice in their histories, with the series even at 1-1. The Eagles claimed the last meeting, 3-2, at a contest in Pittsburgh Sept. 21, 2013.

UP NEXT

The Panthers will open ACC play on the road at North Carolina Friday, Sept. 24, before traveling to Raleigh to face NC State Sunday, Sept. 26. Both matches will be streamed on ACC Network Extra.

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No. 4 Panthers Back on the Road for Comfort Inn-vitational

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Serena Gray

Kayla Lund

Chinaza Ndee

Chiamaka Nwokolo

Valeria Vazquez Gomez

No. 4 Panthers Back on the Road for Comfort Inn-vitational

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Serena Gray

Kayla Lund

Chinaza Ndee

Chiamaka Nwokolo

Valeria Vazquez Gomez

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