Pitt volleyball winning streak reaches five with weekend sweep

Pitt’s volleyball team added two more wins to its season total with victories over Wake Forest and Duke over the weekend. That puts the Panthers at 21-6 on the season and 14-2 in the ACC as they remain tied with Louisville and North Carolina State atop the standings.

Pitt won both matches by a combined five sets to one but they were a bit more difficult than the final score indicated.

Wake Forest is one of the worst teams in the ACC but they gave Pitt a great run on Friday. The Panthers were down much of the first set and had to fight back to win it, 28-26. They they got a stiff challenge in both the second and third sets before narrowly winning both, 25-22.

Sunday against Duke was just as close. On Senior Day both Mariah Bell and Alex Rosignol, the lone seniors and both reserves, got plenty of playing time. Both come off the bench for Pitt but could easily start for other teams. Bell was even a Second Team All-ACC player last season before conceding her spot to true freshman Kayla Lund. Both Bell and Rosignol played well in helping Pitt to win.

Pitt won closely contested first and second sets, 25-19 and 25-22 respectively, to take a 2-0 lead. Duke, however, fought back and took the third, 27-25, before Pitt won the fourth, 25-17.

Duke is the best team the Panthers will face down the rest of the regular season and getting a win there was big to help keep their RPI up.

Next up for Pitt are matches against Clemson (last in the ACC) and Georgia Tech.

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