Pitt
#22 Florida State
No. 1 Pitt Hosts No. 22 Florida State and Miami This Weekend
11/14/2024 2:30:00 PM | Volleyball
PITTSBURGH – The No. 1 Panthers (23-1, 13-1 ACC) host the No. 22 Florida State Seminoles (18-6, 10-4 ACC) and Miami Hurricanes (18-7, 9-5 ACC) for a pair of ACC matches at the Fitzgerald Field House. Pitt takes on Florida State on Friday at 5 p.m. and Miami on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Pitt holds a 13-6 lead in the overall series but look to even the score as Florida State upset the Panthers in five sets in Tallahassee last season. Olivia Babcock racked up 19 kills, five blocks and four digs in the loss. The Panthers and Seminoles shared the ACC Regular Season Championship last season.
Pitt has a 15-4 series advantage over Miami and defeated the Hurricanes twice in 2023. The Panthers beat Miami in four sets on the road but took care of business in three sets at the Fitzgerald Field House. Pin hitters Olivia Babcock and Valeria Vazquez Gomez led the Panthers in the sweep, combining for 27 kills, 15 digs, six blocks and four aces.
TERRIFIC TRIO
• Rachel Fairbanks, Olivia Babcock and Torrey Stafford have been named semifinalists for the 2024 AVCA Division I Player of the Year award.
• Pitt's three nominees lead the country, and Nebraska is the only other team team to have more than one (2).
• All three were named AVCA All-Americans last season and are on track to earn the award once again.
WELL-OILED MACHINE
• Pitt ranks among the top 20 in the country for hitting percentage (1st - .336), opponent hitting percentage (1st - .109), aces per set (8th - 2.06), blocks per set (6th - 2.91), kills per set (18th - 13.92) and assists per set (16th -13.05).
COUNT 'EM!
• Pitt notched its eighth top-25 win of the season against No. 25 North Carolina.
• Five of those eight wins have come against ACC opponents (No. 13 Georgia Tech, No. 15 SMU, No. 5 Stanford, No. 4 Louisville, No. 25 North Carolina).
• The Panthers are 3-0 against top five teams this year (No. 3 Penn State, No. 4 Louisville, No. 5 Stanford).
VOLLEYBALL TAHN
• Eight Pitt volleyball matches have sold out this season (Penn State, Cal, Stanford, Notre Dame, North Carolina, Duke, Florida State and Miami).
• Seven of those eight took place in the Fitzgerald Field House while the victory over the Nittany Lions was in the Petersen Events Center in front of a record-breaking 11,800 people.
DOWNED THE BLUE DEVILS
• The Panthers played solid volleyball against Duke on Sunday, defeating the Blue Devils 25-10, 25-11, 25-13.
• Torrey Stafford had a match-high 13 kills while hitting .480.
• Pitt recorded 12 team blocks and held Duke to a season low, -.049 hitting percentage.
PITT BLUE ON TOP!
• The Panthers defeated No. 25 North Carolina last Friday in three sets.
• Olivia Babcock registered a match-high 18 kills and hit .484, adding three digs, three aces and two blocks.
• Rachel Fairbanks assisted on 37 balls, leading Pitt to hit .434 on the match. This marks the highest opponent hitting percentage the Tar Heels have allowed this season.
HOUSED THE HOKIES
• Pitt defeated Virginia Tech on Sunday in three sets in Blacksburg.
• Olivia Babcock recorded a match-high 18 kills, hitting .341.
• Nisa Buzlutepe notched her first double-double of the season with 31 assists and ten digs. This marked the second of her career.
• Blaire Bayless tied her career high with eight kills.
BROOMS COME OUT
• Pitt downed Virginia in the form of a sweep.
• Olivia Babcock and Torrey Stafford notched 11 kills a piece, both hitting .375 or higher.
• The Panthers dominated in the first set with the greatest point differential of the season as Pitt held a 21-2 advantage. An 8-0 service run from Valeria Vazquez Gomez, a 10-0 service run and three consecutive aces from Olivia Babcock powered Pitt's dominance.
• Emmy Klika had a match-high 13 digs and assisted on five kills.
MISS 1,000
• Valeria Vazquez Gomez recently became the 19th player in program history to reach the 1,000 kills mark in the sweep over Virginia.
• She is also 33 digs away from reaching the 1,000 career digs mark.
• With the 33 digs, Vazquez Gomez will become the eighth player in program history to join the 1,000 kill + 1,000 dig club.
THIRD TIME'S THE CHARM
• Rachel Fairbanks earned a weekly conference honor (ACC Co-Setter of the Week) for the third time this season after two wins over No. 4 Louisville and Notre Dame.
• She averaged 10.33 assists per set, 2.00 digs per set, 0.33 aces per set and 0.33 blocks per set in two wins on the weekend.
• Fairbanks notched 46 assists, nine digs and two blocks in the five-set victory over No. 4 Louisville, setting the Panthers to a .262 hitting percentage.
• She concluded the weekend by recording a season-high 47 assists, nine digs, three aces and a block in the win over Notre Dame, setting Pitt to a .279 hitting percentage.
LUCK OF THE PANTHERS
• Pitt defeated Notre Dame in four sets to wrap up the fifth weekend of ACC play.
• Torrey Stafford recorded her second double-double of the weekend with a match-high 17 kills and season-high 14 digs.
• Rachel Fairbanks registered a season-high 47 assists on the day.
SILENCED THE CARDS
• Pitt defeated No. 4 Louisville for the third straight time on Oct. 25.
• The Panthers have outlasted the Cardinals in five sets in all three contests.
• Bre Kelley recorded her first career double-double with 12 kills and 10 blocks, hitting .500.
• Olivia Babcock tied a match high with 22 kills while hitting .326.
• Torrey Stafford (15K, 13D) and Valeria Vazquez Gomez (10K, 11D) both notched double-doubles.
BALLER BABCOCK
• Babcock was named the AVCA Player of the Week for the second time in her career for her performances against Cal and Stanford.
• She averaged 7.0 points per set, 5.5 kills per set, 1.83 blocks per set and 1.33 digs per set for the week.
• She notched a match-high 16 kills, hitting a season-high .577, five blocks, two aces and two digs in the match against Cal.
• Babcock recorded a match-high 17 kills, hitting .361 against No. 5 Stanford in the sweep and added six blocks, six digs and an ace.
PANTHER DOMINANCE
• Three Panthers earned ACC weekly honors after two sweeps against Cal and #5 Stanford.
• Rachel Fairbanks (Setter), Olivia Babcock (Offensive Player) and Bre Kelley (Defensive Player) notched the awards after impressive play.
HISTORY MAKERS
• The Panthers defeated No. 5 Stanford for the first time in program history in three sets.
• Olivia Babcock had a match-high 17 kills, and Pitt held the Cardinal to a season low -0.48 hitting percentage.
• This marked the second straight match that has been sold out in the Fitzgerald Field House.
BEAR DOWN
• Pitt handily defeated Cal in the Fitzgerald Field House in three sets.
• Eight Panthers recorded a kill in the match and hit .430 as a team.
SENSATIONAL STAFFORD
• Torrey Stafford is hitting .373 for the season, good for 43rd in the nation and first amongst all Division I outside hitters.
• The next closest Power Four pin hitter is 50th in the nation and hitting .368.
KELLEY ON THE RISE
• Middle blocker Bre Kelley has recorded at least five blocks in eight matches this season.
• Her ACC Defensive Player of the Week (10/21) was the first of her career.
• Her ten blocks against No. 4 Louisville tied a career high and are a season high.
• She has hit at least .400 in the last eight matches and is hitting .484 on the season.
SWEPT THE STANGS
• Pitt defeated SMU in straight sets behind 18 kills on a .571 hitting percentage from Olivia Babcock.
• She added a match-high four aces, seven digs and three blocks.
• The Mustangs were held to a season low .109 hitting percentage and were aced 10 times, the most in a single match this season.
• Rachel Fairbanks recorded a match-high 37 assists, setting Pitt to a blistering .427 hitting percentage.
MR. 300
• Head Coach Dan Fisher captured his 300th win at the helm of the Pitt volleyball team against Boston College.
• Fisher now has the most all-time wins at Pitt with 310, passing Shelton Collier with 295 wins (1980-1988).
RECORD BREAKER
• Olivia Babcock recorded a program best 12 aces in a single match against Boston College.
• Her 12 aces passed her previous career high of five and the long-standing program record set in 2005 by Diana Andreyko with eight aces.
TRIPLE-DOUBLE SHOW
• Babcock notched the first triple-double of her career with 14 kills, 12 aces and 10 digs against Boston College.
• She is the first Panther to reach the milestone since Rachel Fairbanks did so in the second round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament against BYU (28A, 13D, 10K).
• Babcock is the first player to record that style of triple-double since the 2021 season.
DYNAMIC DUO
• Torrey Stafford and Olivia Babcock have impressed in their sophomore campaigns after earning All-American status as rookies.
• Babcock ranks among the top 25 in the nation in aces per set (2nd - 0.67), points per set (7th – 5.66) and kills per set (25th – 4.37) while Stafford ranks 43rd in hitting percentage (0.373), 66th in points per set (4.42) and 71st in kills per set (3.84)
• Babcock or Stafford have either led or tied for the team high in kills in each match this season.
BREAK OUT THE BROOMS
• The Panthers earned their 13th sweep of the season against Syracuse.
• Torrey Stafford hit for an impressive .560 hitting percentage, and senior setter Nisa Buzlutepe recorded a season-high 37 assists and added seven digs and a block.
SOARIN' HIGH
• Pitt defeated Boston College in four sets in Chestnut Hill, holding the Eagles to a -.010 hitting percentage.
• Bre Kelley recorded a season-high nine blocks, and Olivia Babcock and Torrey Stafford combined for 28 kills.
• Dalia Vîrlan registered a career-high six kills in the match and hit .455 on 11 attempts.
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 was 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.
• 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.
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.
