Pitt
Washington State
No. 1 Seed Panthers Host NCAA Regionals
12/6/2023 2:26:00 PM | Volleyball
PITTSBURGH – The No. 1 seed Pitt volleyball team (27-4, 16-2 ACC) hosts the NCAA Regionals at the Fitzgerald Field House on Thursday and Saturday. The Panthers play No. 10 Washington State on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. on ESPNU. The winner of that match will play the winner of the No. 7 Louisville/No. 17 Creighton match on Saturday at 4 p.m. on ESPNU.
The Panthers and Cougars meet for the third time in the history of both programs, with the series tied at 1-1. Most recently, Pitt defeated Washington State two years ago in four sets in the a preseason tournament. Valeria Vazquez Gomez led the way with eight kills, ten digs and two aces. The Cougars hold a 26-7 record and have defeated seven top-25 opponents.
Pitt and Creighton could play for the second time as the Bluejays defeated the Panthers in 2017. Creighton is led by All-Americans Kendra Wait and Norah Sis. The Bluejays come into the weekend on a 17 match win streak and won the Big East Championship with a sweep over St. Johns.
The Panthers and Cardinals are familiar foes and ACC rivals. The two have split matches this season as Louisville swept Pitt in Louisville earlier this season. The Panthers earned the split in the season series in the Petersen Events Center after being down two sets to none, reverse sweeping the Cardinals. A few matches later Pitt secured a share of the ACC Championship after recording a 16-2 conference record.
PANTHERS OWN THE EAST
• A program-high seven Panthers were named to the AVCA East Coast Region Team on Tuesday.
• Rachel Fairbanks earned AVCA East Coast Region Player of the Year while Olivia Babcock notched Freshman of the Year honors.
• A Panther has notched the Player of the Year award for the third time in four years (Kayla Lund - 2020 and Courtney Buzzerio - 2022).
BACK-TO-BACK CHAMPS
• For the second straight year, the Panthers have secured a share of the ACC Championship, going 16-2 in conference play.
• Pitt beat two top-10 opponents in Georgia Tech and Louisville in the final four matches of the ACC slate.
ALL-ACC ACCOLADES
• A program record seven Panthers were named All-Conference.
• Rachel Fairbanks, Olivia Babcock and Torrey Stafford are First Team members while Chiamaka Nwokolo, Emma Monks, Valeria Vazquez Gomez and Emmy Klika earned Second Team honors.
• Rachel Fairbanks is the ACC Setter of the Year for the first time in her career while Olivia Babcock is the first Panther to be named ACC Freshman of the Year.
DANCING SHOES
• Pitt is competing in its eighth straight NCAA Tournament, coming off three straight Elite Eights and back-to-back Final Four appearances.
• This is the second time in three years the Panthers are a number one seed, earning the right to host the first four matches of the tournament until the Final Four.
• The Panthers have competed in 19 NCAA Tournaments and hold a 20-18 record.
• Since 2020, Pitt has gone 13-3 in the tournament.
SISTER, SISTER
• Four Panthers have a sister who is competing/competed in the NCAA Tournament.
• Laney Klika (Wofford), Becca Kelley (Oregon), TaKenya Stafford (Coppin State) and Katie Dalton (Kansas) all have played in the big dance.
• Laney and TaKenya willed their respective programs to their first ever NCAA Tournament appearance.
VOLLEYBALL TOWN
• 8,865 people watched Pitt reverse sweep Louisville in the Petersen Events Center for an all-time attendance record in late November.
• This mark beats the previous program high of 5,195 set in 2019 in a home match against Penn State.
• After being down two sets to none, the Panthers came back to complete the reverse sweep.
BIG-TIME BABCOCK
• Freshman Olivia Babcock was named ACC Freshman of the Week six times, ACC Offensive Player of the Week and AVCA National Player of the Week in conference play.
• This is first time a Panther has earned AVCA Player of the Week honors since Kayla Lund did so in 2021.
BLOCK PARTY
• The Panthers are currently third in the nation in blocks per set (2.95) and are holding teams to an average .134 hitting percentage, good for first in the country. Pitt has been ranked top five nationally in these categories throughout the season.
• The combination of Pitt's block and back court defense has been tough to stop this season, and it has held 14 opponents to less than a .100 hitting percentage.
• Both Pitt middle blockers earned All-Conference honors, and Monks is currently fourth in the nation in blocks per set (1.56) and 15th in total blocks despite Pitt sweeping 21 opponents.
OFFENSIVE POWER
• Rachel Fairbanks is setting the Panthers to a team 0.306 hitting percentage, good for top five nationally.
• All five starting attackers are hitting at least .275 for the season.
RECORD WATCH
• Graduate middle blocker Emma Monks is currently one block away from setting the program record for most blocks in a single season (151).
• Her 1.56 blocks per set is a career-high, improving upon last season's 1.04 blocks per set.
• Her .399 hitting percentage is also a career-high.
FRESHMAN PHENOMS
• Torrey Stafford, Olivia Babcock, Blaire Bayless and Haiti Tautua'a came to Pitt as the No. 8 recruiting class according to prepvolleyball.com, and they have not disappointed.
• Torrey Stafford and Olivia Babcock earned spots on the All-ACC Freshman Team and First Team.
• The dynamic duo combined for 711 kills, 321 digs and 175 blocks.
TERRIFIC TRANSFERS
• Head Coach Dan Fisher and the Panthers added three talented transfers in Emma Monks, Logan Mosely and Bre Kelly to the squad at the beginning of the 2023 season.
• Graduate middle blocker Emma Monks joins the Panthers from Ohio State after playing in 69 sets, registering 133 kills and 72 blocks in her four years as a Spartan.
• Junior middle blocker Bre Kelley came to Pitt from the University of Florida, playing in every match and notching 203 kills and 124 blocks. She competed on the U.S. U21 team under Head Coach Dan Fisher.
• Graduate libero/DS Logan came to Pitt from Virginia Tech, where she recorded 1,304 digs in her four years as a Hokie. She has been instrumental as a backrow option in her fifth season.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
• Graduate middle blocker Chiamaka Nwokolo is a two-time captain for the Panthers.
• Chia planned on using her last year of eligibility in 2022. A future lawyer, she had an internship with local law firm Edgar Snyder and Associates this past spring.
• After further discussion with family and Coach Fisher, Chia decided to come back for her final year of eligibility.
OHANA IN PITTSBURGH
• A Hawaiian connection resulted in a home away from home for Lexis Akeo and Haiti Tautua'a.
• Current Assistant Coach Kamalani Akeo played for Coach Fisher for four years at Pitt before being promoted to a coaching position. During her time as a player, Kamalani was named 2016 ACC Setter of the Year and two-time All ACC.
• Graduate setter Lexis Akeo followed in her sister Kamalani's footsteps and committed to Pitt. In her freshman season, Lexis was named ACC Freshman of the Week eight times, a program record.
• Freshman setter Haiti Tautua'a, knowing Lexis in high school, was passionate about coming to Pitt to continue the tradition.
