Pitt
16-3,8-1ACC
NC State
10-9,3-6ACC
No. 4 Panthers Earn Dominant Sweep over NC State Friday Night
10/24/2025 9:15:00 PM | Volleyball
PITTSBURGH -- Behind a match-high 12 kills by Marina Pezelj, the No. 4 Pitt volleyball team (16-3, 8-1 ACC) defeated NC State (10-9, 3-6 ACC) 3-0 (25-11, 25-19, 25-16) Friday night in the Fitzgerald Field House. Pezelj tied her career high in kills, which she previously set at 12 last week against Notre Dame.
Olivia Babcock notched nine kills on a .261 hitting percentage on the heels of earning AVCA National Player of the Week and ACC Offensive Player of the Week honors last week. Brooke Mosher logged a match-high 18 assists and added eight digs. As a team, Pitt hit .374 and tallied 45 combined kills.
Defensively, the Panthers recorded nine total blocks, with Pezelj totaling five block assists and Dalia Vîrlan adding four blocks. Pitt held the Wolfpack to a .135 hitting percentage and 28 kills in the match.
Pitt took the first set 25-11 behind four kills from both Babcock and Vîrlan. The offense logged 15 total kills in the match's opening set and began the match on a 7-2 run, forcing an early Wolfpack timeout. Pitt never trailed in the set and, using a 6-0 mid-set run, took set one to lead the match 1-0.
The Panthers won a back-and-forth second set that saw four lead changes and six ties, ultimately pulling away with an 8-2 run to take the set 25-19. Haiti Tautua'a's late service run helped spark the Panthers, as she logged an ace and served the final three points of the set. Marina Pezelj recorded an impressive five kills in the set and hit at a .357 clip in the first two sets.
Fueled by an 11-3 slide with kills from Babcock and Pezelj, Pitt decisively took set three 25–16 to sweep the match. The Panthers sealed the win with a crowd-riveting Sophia Gregoire swing and kill from a Tautua'a assist.
Pitt returns to the Fitzgerald Field House to face Wake Forest on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. and looks to move to 9-1 in conference play this year.
NOTES
- Pitt moved to 17-2 all-time against NC State, including nine consecutive wins.
- Marina Pezelj swung for 12 kills, tying her career-high 12 against Notre Dame on 10/17/25.
- Babcock logged nine kills while Brooke Mosher logged 18 assists.
- Babcock entered the match ranked second in the nation in points per set (5.94), fourth in total points (410), sixth in kills per set (5.14) and seventh in total kills (355).
