Pitt
Louisville
No. 1 Seed Pitt Hosts Louisville in Regional Finals
12/8/2023 3:40:00 PM | Volleyball
PITTSBURGH – The No. 1 seed Pitt volleyball team (28-4, 16-2 ACC) plays No. 2 seed and ACC rival Louisville (27-4, 15-3 ACC) on Saturday for a spot in the National Semifinals in the Fitzgerald Field House. First serve is set for 4 p.m. and will be streamed on ESPNU.
The Panthers trail in the all-time series against the Cardinals 15-19 but won the most recent match on Nov. 18 in the Petersen Events Center. After being down two sets to none, the Panthers strung together three consecutive sets to win the match and eventually solidify a share of the ACC Championship. The all-time program attendance record was set at the match as 8,865 fans witnessed the win.
Pitt and Louisville have played five times in the past two seasons as both teams defended their home court twice. The Cardinals defeated Pitt in the National Semifinals last season in a five-set battle. The Panthers look to even the score for a chance to advance the National Semifinals for the third time in three seasons. With a win, Pitt would be the only team in the country to compete in the final weekend of play the past three seasons.
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 Fours.
• 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 21-18 record.
• Since 2020, Pitt has gone 14-3 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 competed 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, 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 Pit 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.
MONSTER MONKS
• Graduate middle blocker Emma Monks set the program record for most blocks in a single season, previously held by Jessica Moses with 151. Monks now has 156 blocks to her name.
• Her 1.56 blocks per set is a career-high, improving upon last season's 1.04 blocks per set.
• Her .403 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 736 kills, 332 digs and 183 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.
