Wolfpack Volleyball Reaches 20 Wins with 3-1 Victory at Wake Forest

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – For the second consecutive season, the NC State volleyball team reached the 20-win plateau as the Wolfpack defeated Wake Forest, 3-1 (27-25, 20-25, 25-23, 25-18), Friday afternoon inside Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

With the win, NC State completes the season sweep against the Demon Deacons to improve to 20-11 and 15-5 in Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) play, the most wins in conference play in program history.

Wake Forest concludes the season with a 13-19 record and a 5-15 mark in conference action.

The Wolfpack will now await the decision of the NCAA Selection Committee to learn its postseason fate. The NCAA Selection Show will air live on ESPNU Sunday night at 9 p.m.

Worth Noting
- NC State reached 20 wins with the victory, as the Wolfpack records back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since 2012-13.
- The Wolfpack won the first set for 22^nd time this season and NCSU owns an 18-4 record when winning the opening frame.
- NC State logged a .481 attacking percentage in the fourth set thanks to 15 kills on 27 attempts with only two errors.
- NCSU never trailed in the third set.

Quoting Hampton-Keith
Overall thoughts…
"Excited that our team stepped up to the challenge of playing in our fourth road match," said head coach Linda Hampton-Keith. "I'm proud of our persistence and perseverance against a tough opponent on their senior night."

Match Rewind
- NC State started the match on fire, as the squad raced out to a 9-3 lead in the opening frame after a service ace from Julia Brown.
- The Wolfpack pulled ahead 22-17 in the set, but Wake Forest battled to even the score at 23-23.
- A kill from Kaitlyn Kearney fought off a set point opportunity for the Demon Deacons at 25-24 and the Pack closed out the frame on a 3-0 run to win it, 27-25.
- Wake Forest opened the second set by winning seven of the first nine points and NC State could not overcome the deficit, as the Deacs' went on to win the frame, 25-20.
- The Wolfpack turned in a stellar start to the third frame, however; Wake Forest countered to fight its way back in the set.
- After NC State took a 17-10 lead, Wake Forest battled back to later even the set at 22-22 to force a Wolfpack timeout.
- Out of the break, NCSU closed out the set with a 3-1 run to win the set, 25-23, after a kill from Bree Bailey.
- The Pack jumped out to a 9-5 advantage in the fourth frame to force a Demon Deacons timeout after a service ace from Kearney.
- Back-to-back kills from Bailey gave NC State a 19-15 lead before another kill from the Salt Lake City, Utah native two rallies later to make it 20-16.
- With NCSU leading 23-18, Kearney tallied consecutive kills and Brown capped the set with a kill from the outside to give the Wolfpack a 25-18 win and 3-1 victory in the match.

Top Performers
- Brown led the Wolfpack with 16 kills in the contest and also charted nine digs to finish one shy of her third consecutive double-double.
- Kearney recorded her first double-double of the season with 13 kills and also logged a season-high 10 blocks.
- Bailey also reached double digit kills with 11 in the match to go along with a .360 attacking percentage.
- At setter, Kylie Pickrell dished out 43 assists complemented by seven digs, five blocks and three kills.
- Defensively, libero Emily Harris collected 11 digs and Kassie Kasper added 10.

Up Next
NC State will now await the decision of NCAA Selection Committee to learn of its postseason fate. The NCAA Selection Show will be broadcast live on ESPNU Sunday night at 9 p.m.

Wolfpack Volleyball Reaches 20 Wins with 3-1 Victory at Wake Forest

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Team Stats

Julia Brown

Kaitlyn Kearney

Bree Bailey

Teni Sopitan

Players Mentioned

Bree Bailey

Julia Brown

Emily Harris

Kassie Kasper

Kaitlyn Kearney

Kylie Pickrell

Players Mentioned

Bree Bailey

Julia Brown

Emily Harris

Kassie Kasper

Kaitlyn Kearney

Kylie Pickrell