No. 8 Pitt defeated Miami in three sets at Fitzgerald Field House Friday night for their first home ACC sweep in 2022.
The Panthers (17-2 overall, 7-0 ACC) earn their tenth straight victory of the season. It is also their tenth consecutive win over the Hurricanes (10-8 overall, 3-4 ACC), starting in 2015. The 7-0 start in ACC play is the first since 2019 for the Panthers and the fourth time in the past six years.
Both teams battled it out in the first set, with each team tied at 18 late on. Pitt took the lead, 22-18, as they scored four unanswered points, but Miami responded with three points of their own to cut the lead back to one.
The Panthers took the set, 25-22, by scoring three of the next four points from kills by graduate right setter Courtney Buzzerio and redshirt junior outside hitter Valeria Vasquez Gomez and finished off with a service ace by sophomore outside hitter Julianna Dalton.
Pitt started the second set off with a 6-1 run and led Miami by five points early on. Miami managed to cut the to two on a 6-2 run, but Pitt countered by finishing the set on a 7-2 run, 25-18.
With each team tied at seven points a piece, the Panthers went on an 8-3 scoring run to lead 15-10 midway through the third set. The Hurricanes scored five of the next six points to trim the lead to two, but the Panthers stayed in control and led 21-17.
Miami then went on a 5-1 run to tie the set at 22, threatening to end Pitt’s chance of a sweep. Pitt responded by scoring three consecutive points to end the set and the match, with Buzzerio making a kill, sophomore setter Rachel Fairbanks with a service ace and a solo block from graduate middle blocker Serena Gray.
Buzzerio continues to lead the Panthers’ attack, making a team-high 12 kills in the victory over the Hurricanes. That marks the 11th straight game that Buzzerio led the Panthers in kills and in double digits too. It is also her 15th game this season with double digit kills. She also played another efficient game, with a .370 hitting percentage and a .444 kill percentage, second and third best on the Panthers, respectively.
Vasquez Gomez played great once again, both offensively and defensively. She finished second for Pitt with 11 kills and with 11 digs, posting a double-double. This makes it her second straight game in double digits in both categories and the third in the past four games.
Fairbanks played an all around game in the win against Miami. She finished first for Pitt with 21 assists, six digs, and five kills, as she moves around from the setter position to functioning more as an outside hitter at times. Graduate outside hitter Cam Ennis played back-up to Fairbanks and provided 14 assists.
Gray and senior middle blocker Chiamaka Nwokolo finished tied first for the Panthers in blocks, as both made five each. Gray led the Panthers with a .462 hitting percentage and a .462 kill percentage. Her three solo blocks also tie a career best.
Senior libero/defensive specialist Ashley Browske led Pitt with 15 digs. It is her fifth straight game with 10 or more digs and eight of the past nine games.
Dalton finished third in kills with 10 on the night, making it the second of the past three games with double-digit kills. She also provided six
Pitt finishes off the weekend with a match at home against Florida State on Sunday, Oct. 16 at 1 p.m.
Sunday-this will be more entertaining than watching the Steelers!