Volleyball: Panthers ready to defend home court

After an inconsistent performance on the road last weekend, Pitt womens’ volleyball head coach… After an inconsistent performance on the road last weekend, Pitt womens’ volleyball head coach Toby Rens looks forward to returning home.

“It is always nice to be back on a familiar court,” Rens said. “Hopefully we can use that to our advantage this weekend.”

The Panthers went 1-1 after controlling Georgetown for three sets, but losing a close game to Villanova. Now that the team is back in Pittsburgh, players said the home advantage could boost their Big East record.

“All this week in practice, my goal is to focus on defending our home floor and getting two Big East wins,” junior Margy Acton said. “I want to maximize our home-court advantage and come away 2-0.”

This weekend, the Pitt volleyball team (12-6, 2-2 Big East) could move up from the middle of the pack if it defeats Big East opponents Notre Dame and DePaul at the Fitzgerald Field House.

Freshman Cassandra Congemi agrees that the Panthers need to take advantage of this opportunity, especially given the competition level in the Big East.

“Every match from here on out will be a challenge,” Congemi said. “Our conference is so evenly matched and any team can win a given match. We have to be on our game and ready to play and take advantage of any edge, such as being at home.”

In preparation for the arrival of the Fighting Irish and the Blue Demons, the Panthers will look to improve upon weaknesses revealed in their most recent 3-1 loss to Villanova.

The players often became stuck in a rotation for multiple points against the Wildcats, allowing Villanova to go on scoring runs such as the 5-1 run it compiled to win the opening set.

“We were tied 20-20 in set one, but we could not get the side out,” Rens said. “This week, we hope to work on eliminating those ruts so that our opponents do not have the chance to run away with the lead.”

The Panthers must also work on managing a balanced offensive attack. Although senior middle hitter Kiesha Leggs led the team with 37 kills on the weekend and sophomore outside hitter Monica Wignot contributed 22, Rens would like to see more ball distribution so the pressure isn’t solely on Leggs and Wignot.

“We have a few rotations that are not generating a lot of points,” Rens said.  “If we can get everyone involved more on offense, it will only help Kiesha and Monica.”

To ensure that the balanced attack is executed, the team will rely on starting freshman setter Lindsey Zitzke, who has won Big East Freshman of the Week twice this season.

“Lindsey is more than capable of running an efficient offense, and she has shown that this year already,” Rens said. “Her ability to keep a quick tempo for the time has been impressive.”

In addition to leading the team in assists, Zitzke also excels from the serving line. She is second in the conference in serving aces per set.

Serving has been a large part of the Panthers’ success this season, and the team currently leads the Big East with a total of 25 aces.

The Panthers’ preparation will be important, as both Notre Dame and DePaul will be looking for wins to put them above .500 in the Big East.

The Fighting Irish (9-6, 2-3) have dropped their last three conference matches against Villanova, Cincinnati and Louisville.

DePaul is also experiencing a rough streak, having lost both of its past two contests in three straight sets. However, the play of senior Lauren Blasi has bolstered the team’s recent matches, and head coach Nadia Edwards said Blasi’s leadership skills will help in the future.

After the Blue Demons’ most recent loss to Cincinnati, Edwards remarked that Lauren was the team’s “go-to person” for points.

The Panthers defense will have to be ready for such an offensive attack — but for Acton, that’s nothing new.

Acton has consistently led her team in digs per match. She said that the defense as a whole aims to execute a similar game plan each match.

“As a defense, our plan is to keep momentum on our side and stop the opponent from generating any,” Acton said. “I think we have been able to stop some of our opponents’ best players, and we hope to do that this weekend as well.”