North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
6-1
Harvard
2-2
NC State Volleyball Surges Past Harvard, 3-1
9/12/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
ATHENS, Ga. – The NC State women’s volleyball team opened play in the Georgia Benson Hospitality Invitational with a 3-1 (25-19, 26-28, 25-18, 26-24) win versus the Harvard Crimson, Friday evening inside the Ramsey Center on the University of Georgia’s campus.
The Wolfpack improves to 6-1 on the season, while the Crimson falls to 2-2.
Bunn’s Beat
Opening statement…
“It’s always good to win, but we have to play better than we did today,” said head coach Bryan Bunn. “We didn’t come out with the level of intensity that we should have and it showed early in the match. We refocused after losing the second set and played better throughout the remainder of the match.”
On the play of the team in the third set…
“We started playing to the level that we are capable. The team was locked in and we started taking advantage of some of the things that we talked about in our scouting report before the match.”
On freshman Kaitlyn Kearney’s play…
“She did a nice job for us today. She’s a very intelligent player and is very mindful about what she’s doing on the court.”
Worth Noting
- NC State extended its winning streak to six matches, the longest winning streak for the program since starting the 2013 season 6-0.
- The Wolfpack moves to 5-1 on the season when recording a higher hitting percentage (.208) than its opponents (.150).
- After Harvard jumped out to a 5-3 lead in the first set, State countered with five unanswered points thanks to the strong serving of senior Nikki Glass and went on to win the frame, 25-19.
- Glass’ serve proved to be problematic for the Crimson in the third set as well as the Wolfpack used a 5-0 run to stretch its lead to 18-12.
- In the third set, the Pack recorded the highest attacking percentage of the night for either team with a .320 clip, following 14 kills on 25 swings with only six errors in the frame.
- The Wolfpack opened the fourth set by winning 14 of the first 18 points to take a 14-4 lead. State used a 7-0 run, 3-0 run and a pair of 2-0 runs to build the advantage.
Key Performers
- Freshman Kaitlyn Kearney paced the Wolfpack offensively with a match-high 12 kills and an impressive .500 attacking percentage. Classmate Perry Ramsey had nine kills, while seniors Rachel Buckley and Alesha Wilson each had eight.
- At the setter position, sophomore Maggie Speaks tallied a match-high 35 assists to lead the squad.
- Senior libero Alston Kearns recorded the most digs in the match for either side with 15 and sophomore Rachel Eppley contributed eight.
Up Next
NC State returns to action in the Benson Hospitality Invitational on Saturday at 10 a.m. against UNC Asheville. The Pack will conclude play in the tournament by taking on host Georgia at 7 p.m. in a contest that will be broadcast live on the SEC Network +/Watch ESPN.
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