Pitt
Boston College
No. 1 Pitt Heads North to Play Boston College and Syracuse
10/3/2024 2:00:00 PM | Volleyball
PITTSBURGH – The No. 1 Pitt volleyball team (12-0, 2-0 ACC) prepares to play Boston College (7-7, 0-2 ACC) on the road on Friday at 7 p.m. The Panthers will wrap up the weekend in New York as they take on Syracuse (12-2, 0-2 ACC) on Sunday at 11 a.m.
The Panthers look to continue their dominance in the overall series against Boston College as they have won 38 of the 39 contests. The last time the Eagles defeated Pitt was in 2000. Pitt defeated Boston College last season in Pittsburgh in three sets behind Torrey Stafford and Olivia Babcock's 27 combined kills and 11 digs.
Similarly, Pitt defeated Syracuse in the first meeting with the Orange last season in three sets. Blaire Bayless notched a career-high eight kills on a blistering .667 hitting percentage. Torrey Stafford also led the charge after nearly registering a double-double with nine kills and 10 digs.
The Panthers recorded their second sweep of Syracuse in their second and final meeting in the 2023 season. With the win, Pitt captured its second straight ACC Championship.
LOOKING FOR WIN 300
• Head Coach Dan Fisher is one win away from reaching 300 wins at the helm of the Pitt volleyball team.
• Fisher now has the most all-time wins at Pitt with 299, passing Shelton Collier with 295 wins (1980-1988).
WELL-OILED MACHINE
• Pitt ranks among the top ten in the country for hitting percentage (1st - .370), opponent hitting percentage (3rd - .115), aces per set (4th - 2.25), kills per set (5th - 14.36) and assists per set (9th - 13.31).
DYNAMIC DUO
• Torrey Stafford and Olivia Babcock have impressed in their sophomore campaigns after earning All-American status as rookies.
• Stafford ranks among the top 20 in the nation in points per set (16th – 5.09) and kills per set (T19th – 4.41) while Babcock ranks 4th nationally in points per set (5.62) and is tied for 19th with Stafford in kills per set (4.41).
• Babcock or Stafford have either led or tied for the team high in kills in each match this season.
PANTHERS STING YELLOW JACKETS
• Pitt dominated in a 3-0 sweep of then No. 13 Georgia Tech, holding the Yellow Jackets to less than 20 points in each set.
• This is the first time this season Georgia Tech has been held to a sub .200 hitting percentage (-.043).
• Pitt hit a blistering .493, its second highest team hitting percentage of the season behind a .516 clip against Buffalo.
• The Panthers recorded a season-high 12 blocks in the three-set win.
ACC OPENER WON
• Pitt took care of business in the ACC opener against Clemson last Friday.
• The Panthers held the Tigers to a .094 hitting percentage and hit an efficient .326.
• Olivia Babcock had a match-high 15 kills and hit .406 in the sweep.
36 STRAIGHT
• The Panthers have won 12 straight matches and 36 consecutive sets this season.
• Of the 36 sets played, opponents have only reached the 20-point mark six times.
• Thirty-six straight sets won is a program record.
CAREER DAY
• Five different Panthers recorded career bests against UMBC on Sept. 25.
• Cat Flood (6K), Dalia Vírlan (4K), Bianca Garibaldi (2K), Ryla Jones (1SA) and Blaire Bayless (2SA) all impressed in the sweep of the Retrievers.
PANTHERS SWEEP GOLDEN EAGLES
• Pitt looked sharp against Marquette, sweeping the Golden Eagles.
• The Panthers hit .398, and three Panthers (Olivia Babcock, Torrey Stafford and Valeria Vazquez Gomez) recorded at least 10 kills.
• Rachel Fairbanks recorded 39 assists, six digs, three blocks and two digs.
• Emmy Klika picked up a season-high 18 digs.
PITT DOMINATES PIRATES
• The Panthers once again swept East Carolina behind Olivia Babcock's match-high 19 kills.
• Senior setter Nisa Buzlutepe recorded 30 assists, and Cat Flood tied her career high with three aces.
QB1 DOING QB1 THINGS
• Rachel Fairbanks was named the ACC Co-Setter of the Week for the first time this season (9/23)
• This marks the fifth Setter of the Week award of her career since switching to a one setter offense.
• She averaged 13.5 assists per set and set the team to a .391 hitting percentage in the wins over then No. 3 Penn State, ECU and Marquette.
THE ROOKIE IMPRESSES
• Ryla Jones earned her first ACC Freshman of the Week honor after an impressive three match stretch.
• She recorded seven kills in the sweep of No. 3 Penn State, hitting .636 on 11 attempts and added a match-high six blocks.
• Against East Carolina, she notched a career-high eight kills, hitting .800 on 10 attempts and added five blocks and three kills and four blocks in the sweep of Marquette.
SWEET SWEEP
• The Panthers swept No. 3 Penn State in the Petersen Events Center in front of a record-breaking crowd (11,800).
• Torrey Stafford and Rachel Fairbanks shined, recording 17 kills and 42 assists, respectively.
• Freshman middle blocker Ryla Jones had a then career-high seven kills on a .636 hitting percentage.
• Senior libero Emmy Klika recorded 15 digs per set.
ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER AWARD
• Olivia Babcock was named the ACC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in her career after her impressive week in California.
• On the weekend, she averaged 6.17 points per set, 5.11 kills per set, 2.22 digs per set, 0.78 blocks per set and 0.67 aces per set on the weekend, hitting .347.
• This is the eighth conference weekly honor she has received after being named ACC Freshman of the Week six times last year.
BATTLED THE TROJANS, AND WON
• Pitt recorded its second top 25 win with a 3-0 sweep over then No. 23 USC in Los Angeles on Sept. 11.
• California natives Torrey Stafford, Olivia Babcock and Rachel Fairbanks impressed in their hometown, as the sophomore pin hitters combined for 30 kills while Fairbanks recorded 38 assists.
• Freshman middle blocker Ryla Jones led the Panthers with seven blocks and added four kills.
PUT A RING ON IT
• The 2023 ACC Champions and Final Four participants were given their rings prior to the Penn State match by alumni and Forever Panthers.
• Cat Flood, Rachel Fairbanks and Emmy Klika received their third ring (2021 Final Four, 2022 ACC Championship/Final Four, 2023 ACC Championship/Final Four) while Valeria Vazquez Gomez was given her fourth ring, as she was a part of the 2019 ACC Championship team.
DOWN GO THE DUCKS
• The Panthers defeated No. 10 Oregon in its season opener in straight sets.
• Senior setter Rachel Fairbanks led the charge with her first double-double of the season (34A, 11D).
• Sophomore outside hitter Torrey Stafford came in hot after returning from injury, recording a match-high 13 kills on a .333 hitting percentage and adding five digs.
CONQUERED THE BEACH
• Pitt dominated in its second match of the season, beating Long Beach State in a 3-0 sweep fashion.
• Four freshmen experienced their college debut while senior transfer setter Nisa Buzlutepe saw her first action against The Beach.
• The team was clicking on all cylinders, hitting .351 for the match.
• Rachel Fairbanks recorded her second straight double-double with 25 assists and 11 digs.
PITT IN RED, WHITE AND BLUE
• Olivia Babcock and Blaire Bayless competed with Team USA once again this summer.
•Babcock played with the Senior National Team in Anaheim, Calif., the only rising sophomore in NCAA volleyball to do so.
• Bayless trained with the U-19 National Team, winning the gold medal at the NORCECA U21 Continental Championship in Toronto, Canada.
FISHER IN HIS 12TH SEASON
• Head coach Dan Fisher is in his 12th season at the helm of the Pitt volleyball team.
• He is building upon his unprecedented success and seek his sixth ACC Championship and first National Championship.
• Fisher currently holds a 299-67 overall record, good for a .817 winning percentage.
FAIRBANKS RUNS THE SHOW
• The reigning ACC Setter of the Year and AVCA East Coast Region Player of the Year, Rachel Fairbanks, is putting up solid performances in her fourth and final season in Pittsburgh.
• The senior is 11th in the nation in assists per set (10.86) and has recorded double digit digs twice so far.
FAMILY TIES
• Freshman middle blocker Ryla Jones has deep ties to the game as her sister, Rainelle Jones, played volleyball for the University of Maryland and her twin sister, Renee, is committed to play at the University of Arizona.
• Rainelle is currently first in program history in career total blocks and block assists at Maryland.
• Jones comes from an athletic family as her dad (basketball - University of Maryland), mom (basketball - University of Winnipeg), brother (basketball - Charleston Southern), sister (rowing - Drexel) also all play or have played Division I sports.
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE
• The 2024 team boasts four international student-athletes, including sixth year Puerto Rican Valeria Vazquez Gomez, senior Turkish setter Nisa Buzlutepe, Argentinian freshman Bianca Garibaldi and Romanian newcomer Dalia Vîrlan.
• Vazquez Gomez, Garibaldi and Vîrlan have National Team experience and look to make an impact at the net.
ONE LAST GO AROUND
• Graduate outside hitters Valeria Vazquez Gomez and Cat Flood decided to use their final year of eligibility in pursuit of a championship.
• Flood has been critical in big moments behind the service line for the Panthers while Vazquez Gomez has become an elite, well rounded player for Pitt.
