Wolfpack Volleyball Leads Early, but Edged Late by No. 12 UNC-Chapel Hill

Thursday, September 22

Raleigh, N.C.

7 P.M.

NC State

7-6, 0-1ACC

#12 UNC - Chapel Hill

9-2, 1-0ACC

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Final F
North Carolina	25	20	21	25	15	3
NC State	17	25	25	14	7	2

Photo by: Karl DeBlaker

Wolfpack Volleyball Leads Early, but Edged Late by No. 12 UNC-Chapel Hill

9/22/2016 11:02:00 PM | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score Highlights Press Conference

NC State takes 2-1 lead, but can’t hold off a late UNC comeback

RALEIGH, N.C. – The NC State volleyball team went head-to-head with 12^th-ranked UNC-Chapel Hill and led 2-1 in the match, but the Tar Heels rallied for the five-set (17-25, 25-20, 25-21, 14-25, 7-15) victory Thursday night inside Reynolds Coliseum.

The Wolfpack falls to 7-6 overall and 0-1 in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play, while the Tar Heels improve to 9-2 and 1-0 in league action.

Quoting Hampton-Keith
Opening statement…
"It was a fantastic match played by both teams, but no moral victories," said head coach Linda Hampton-Keith. "I think the expectation is high and we're okay with that, so we're disappointed to lose.

"We had some opportunities there that we didn't capitalize on. Offensively we had some stalls that we'll look to address. If you go up 2-1 on a team like that you have to continue to maintain and keep your level high so you can take advantage of that opportunity and finish out with a win. We'll learn from that and move on and keep plugging away."

On being a part of the rivalry for the first time…
"It was fun and always is to be a part of the rivalry. The crowd was great and we had lots of fun and exciting things going on in the environment. It was a really fun match to be a part of and I hope our fans keep coming back because I think it was a fun and entertaining game for the fans to see."

Match Rewind
- NC State and UNC-Chapel Hill each started the match well, as the score was knotted at four and then again at five before the Tar Heels went on a 5-2 run to extend their lead to 13-8.
- The Wolfpack countered later in the frame with a 5-2 run of its own to trim the UNC-CH lead to 19-16, but the Heels reeled off five unanswered en route to the 25-17 first-set win.
- In the second set, NC State recorded its highest attacking percentage of the night with a .306 clip, while limiting UNC-Chapel Hill to a .132 mark.
- UNC started fast in the frame, jumping out to a 16-11 advantage but the Wolfpack won seven consecutive points thanks to some strong serving from senior Rachel Eppley to take an 18-16 lead.
- Leading 19-18, a 4-0 run extended the NCSU lead to 23-18 and Maggie Speaks capped the frame with a kill at the net to even the match at one set apiece with the 25-20 win.
- The Pack kept the momentum rolling into the third set. With the score tied at 12, NC State scored seven unanswered points to grab a 19-12 lead with junior Kaitlyn Kearney igniting the run from the service line.
- After a late comeback, Teni Sopitan put down a kill to give NC State a 2-1 lead in the match with the 25-21 third-set victory.
- UNC-Chapel Hill put together an 8-0 run in the fourth set to pull away from the Wolfpack and force a deciding set with a 25-14 win.
- NC State jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the fifth frame, but UNC countered with four consecutive points.
- Tied 4-4, a 6-0 run allowed UNC-CH to build a comfortable lead and the Wolfpack could not recover, dropping the set, 15-7, and the match, 3-2.

Top Performers
- Junior Julia Brown led the Wolfpack offense with 17 kills and 21 digs to record her fourth consecutive and six overall double-double performance of the season.
- Classmate Perry Ramsey swatted 16 kills, while Sopitan put down 12.
- Speaks dished out a match-high 48 assists to go along with nine digs and five kills from her setter position.
- Defensively, Eppley tied for the match high with 22 digs and Kearney led NC State with four blocks.

Up Next
NC State will to head to New York for its first ACC road trip, as the squad will take on Syracuse Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.