Volleyball sweeps home tournament over the weekend

The home-court advantage seemed to work for the Panthers this weekend as the Pitt women’s…

Pitt and Margy Acton (12) defended its home floor with ease.

Ryan Samson, For the Pitt News

The home-court advantage seemed to work for the Panthers this weekend as the Pitt women’s volleyball team compiled a set record of 9-0 to win the Panther Invitational held at the Fitzgerald Field House.

The Panthers hosted Coastal Carolina, Howard and Butler universities on Friday and Saturday, defeating each opponent in three straight sets. Sophomore setter Lindsey Zitzke and senior outside hitter Alexa Campbell were named to the All-Tournament team, while senior middle blocker Jasmine Dittrich was named MVP of the weekend.

Pitt 3, Coastal Carolina 0

In their opening match of the tournament, the Panthers faced the Chanticleers of Coastal Carolina and swept the match with set scores of 25-20, 25-11 and 25-23.

Offensively, the Panthers put together a balanced attack with four players recording at least six kills. Dittrich led the way with nine kills. On defense, senior libero Margy Acton paced the team with her match-high nine digs.

The Panthers fell behind early in the first set as the Chanticleers built an 8-5 advantage, but six kills by Dittrich helped the team regain the lead. For Pitt head coach Toby Rens, this ability to recover was vital in the match.

“For the team aspect, I thought we did an excellent job of executing our game plan and keeping our composure,” Rens said. “We were able to focus on our own game.”

While the Panthers never trailed in the second set, the third and final set saw 11 ties and three lead changes. With the score knotted at 23, the Panthers capitalized on two Coastal Carolina errors to take the set and the match victory.

Pitt 3, Howard 0

During the second match of the invitational, Rens was able to shuffle the rotation and give younger players the opportunity to gain on-court experience.

“We were able to get a good look at some of our players who haven’t had a chance to prove themselves,” Rens said. “I was impressed with their efforts and the leadership they showed on the court.”

Pitt comfortably defeated Howard in three sets with scores of 25-12, 25-11 and 25-20, and freshman Amanda Orchard recorded a career-high seven kills.

“Amanda did a great job in her first all-around appearance,” Rens said. “Her performance shows that we have a lot of depth on this team.”

Zitzke agreed with Rens’ assessment and noted that the Pitt team members are always prepared to compete.

“We have a competitive edge, no matter who is on the court,” Zitzke said. “Anyone on this team can step into the lineup and contribute, because we practice that every week.”

The keys to the Panthers’ dominance against Howard were serving and serve-reception defense. The Panthers tallied 10 service aces, while holding Howard to zero.

For Dittrich, the strength of the Pitt team against Howard was evident in the options created offensively.

“We were able to remain focused and get the passes to Lindsey [Zitzke],” Dittrich said. “With good defense comes good offense, and we were able to consistently have all three hitting options available, which kept Howard on the defensive.”

Pitt 3, Butler 0

The final contest of the tournament proved to be the toughest challenge for the Panthers, but they anticipated that difficulty going into the match.

“Butler is an experienced team, returning four starters from a successful team last year,” Rens said before the match. “We anticipate a competitive match against the Bulldogs.”

The Panthers jumped out to an early 4-0 lead in the first set and never gave up that lead en route to a 25-17 set victory. Pitt had the advantage for most of the second set as well, but Butler managed to tie the score at 24. An ace by sophomore libero Delaney Clesen put the Panthers ahead, and the set ended on a Butler attack error.

Once again, the third set was the most contested of the match.

After battling to a 25-25 tie, three kills by Campbell sealed the win and earned the Panthers top honors in their own invitational.

In evaluating the weekend’s performance, Rens was able to recognize his team’s mental focus.

“I was extremely pleased with the total team effort from start to finish this weekend,” Rens said. “Friday night we showed heart [against Coastal Carolina], and I was pleased with our execution.  Against Butler, we battled and it is great that we did not drop a set the entire weekend.”

The Panthers will travel next to New Orleans to compete in the Allstate Sugar Bowl Collegiate Classic next weekend. As part of the tournament, they will face Tulane, Sam Houston State and Mississippi State universities.