Groom Paces Pack in Win Over Blue Devils

RALEIGH, N.C. – Junior middle blocker Sophie Groom paced the NC State volleyball team with 10 kills while hitting a perfect 1.00 in the 3-0 win over Duke Sunday afternoon at Reynolds Coliseum.

The Pack moves to 9-5 overall and 4-2 in conference play.

Breaking Down the Match

The Wolfpack took a 3-0 lead to begin the match. Duke managed to tie the opening frame on five occasions, but NC State maintained all the momentum.
The Pack went on a 13-3 scoring run, highlighted by three consecutive service aces from senior opposite Amanda Rice. NC State took the first set, 25-15.
Rice led the Pack with five kills and junior outside Ava Brizard added four.
The Pack continued to dominate in set two, jumping out to an 8-2 lead that force Duke to use an early timeout.
The Blue Devils trailed by six on four different occasions in set two and the Wolfpack led by as many as seven (21-14).
The Pack closed out the second set on a 6-2 scoring run and took the set 25-15.
Groom led the team with four kills in the second frame.
NC State was unstoppable in set three and jumped out to a 5-0 lead over Duke that forced the Blue Devils to use an early timeout. Out of the timeout, Duke score three straight points, but a kill by Ava Brizard ended the scoring run.
The Pack went on a 12-3 scoring run that pushed the lead to 11 (24-13). Duke forced a second match point to be played after Rylie Kadel tallied a kill to get Duke its final point of the afternoon. A service error by the Blue Devils allowed the Pack to take set three, 25-13.
The Wolfpack hit .337 on the afternoon to mark the second highest hitting percentage as a team this season.
The nine attack errors on 98 attempts with 42 kills marked the second lowest error total this season for NC State.
Three members of the Pack tallied five blocks, marking the second time this season three members of the Pack have tallied five or more blocks in a match.
The sweep marked the third this season for NC State.
The win marked the ninth of the season, fourth in ACC play, 202^nd ACC win in program history, 809^th win in program history, and 71^st win under Slabe.

Stat Leaders
Kills: Sophie Groom, Amanda Rice (10)
Digs: Courtney Bryant (14)
Assists: Naomi Cabello (20)
Blocks: Sophie Groom, Jada, Allen, Amanda Rice (5)
Aces: Skye Stokes (4)

Up Next
The Pack will hit the road for four games, starting with a match at Notre Dame on Friday, Oct. 18. First serve is set for 7:30pm on ACCNX.

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Team Stats

Amanda Rice

Sophie Groom

Ava Brizard

Madison Williams

Players Mentioned

Ava Brizard

Courtney Bryant

Naomi Cabello

Sophie Groom

Amanda Rice

Skye Stokes