Pitt Volleyball Makes History, Advances to NCAA Sweet 16

It was a history making night for Dan Fisher and the Pitt volleyball program.

For the first time in program history, Pitt advanced past the second round of the NCAA Volleyball Playoffs, as they upset #14 seed Utah, sweeping them by the scores of 25-16, 25-18 and 25-19.

it wasn’t a dream 😳

STILL. DANCING.#H2P | #NCAAVB pic.twitter.com/h2mCLA43rh

— Pitt Volleyball (@Pitt_VB) April 16, 2021

The Panthers advance to the Sweet 16 and will face No. 3 Minnesota on Sunday in Omaha, Nebraska. This matchup will start at 1 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN3.

Pitt was led by senior right side hitter Chinaza Ndee, who recorded a team-high 17 kills along with Kayla Lund, who recorded a .467 hitting percentage along with 15 kills. Lund also led Pitt with 16 digs, as he recorded her eighth double-double of the season. Other standouts for Pitt included Sabrina Starks (6 blocks), Ashley Browske (12 digs), Kylee Levers (22 assists) and Lexis Akeo (18 assists).

A historic match point! 👀@Pitt_VB advances to its first-ever Round of 16 after taking down (14) Utah in straight sets on Thursday.#NCAAVB pic.twitter.com/13oq7X1CPW

— NCAA Women's Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball) April 16, 2021

The Panthers completely dominated #14 seed Utah in all team statistics: Kills (49-41), assists (47-37), service aces (5-0) and digs (56-46).