Volleyball: Pitt wins two, loses one on first road trip

The Pitt volleyball team played on an unfamiliar court for the first time this weekend, but the… The Pitt volleyball team played on an unfamiliar court for the first time this weekend, but the Panthers managed to continue their success at the Residence Inn/UCF Invitational.

Pitt (8-2), who finished 2-1 at the invitational, spent the early part of the season in Pittsburgh with seven consecutive matches in the Fitzgerald Field House. Panther head coach Toby Rens admitted that being the away team can be a challenge but said that his team responded well overall.

“It is different playing on another court without the familiarity and support of a home crowd,” Rens said. “Still, we were able to focus on our play in the matches, and that mental part is huge on road trips.”

The Panthers played three matches over the weekend, defeating Florida Atlantic and UNC Greesnboro. In between, Pitt fell to the University of Central Florida, a team that defeated No. 3 USC in its previous match.

Pitt is off to a solid start this season, only losing matches to UCF and defending national champion Penn State. The Nittany Lions are currently ranked No. 5 in the country.

In the first match of the weekend, the Panthers defeated the Florida Atlantic Owls (0-7) in three straight sets with scores of 25-18, 25-18 and 25-16 and dominated most aspects of the game.

The Panthers relied heavily on their defense to limit the Owls to just 19 kills while the Panthers themselves posted 43. Sophomore outside hitter Monica Wignot and senior middle blocker Kiesha Leggs contributed 11 and 10 kills, respectively, to that total.

“Our offense was well-balanced against Florida Atlantic,” Wignot said. “It is nice to be able to lead with the kills, but it is definitely more important to me that my offense helped toward a win.”

Junior libero Margy Acton led the defensive effort, earning a match-high 15 digs. Junior outside hitter Alexa Campbell chipped in with eight as the Panthers tallied 38 digs total in the match.

As part of a roster containing only two seniors, the underclassmen have played consistently well throughout the year. Against Florida Atlantic, another young player showed her skill.

Coming back to the team after rehabbing an injury, freshman outside hitter Jessica Wynn made her season debut against the Owls and finished with six kills in the three sets.

“It was definitely nice to see Jessica back in uniform,” Rens said. “She is not quite at 100 percent yet, but the fact that she still made an impact after being out three weeks shows her determination and importance to the team.”

The Panthers’ next match, against the University of Central Florida Knights, proved more challenging, and the Pitt team fell in three straight sets by scores of 25-17, 25-22 and 25-13.

Coming off an upset victory over No. 3 USC, the Knights (7-1), used their momentum to pick up a win from the Panthers.

UCF out-hit Pitt by 11 kills and — except for an early 1-0 lead in the first set — the Panthers trailed the Knights for the entire match.

“We knew going into the weekend that UCF would be our toughest match, especially since they were on their own court,” Rens said. “We got off to a slow start and were never able to recover to gain an advantage.”

Offensively, Leggs and Wynn carried the Panthers with nine and seven kills, respectively. Acton once again led both teams with her 17 digs.

Following the loss to UCF, the Panthers regained their confidence and finished the invitational with a win, defeating UNC Greesnboro (4-6) in their sixth straight-set win of the season.

For freshman setter Lindsey Zitzke, the match made up for an emotional loss the night before.

“We were upset with the outcome against UCF, especially because we felt they took us away from our game plan,” Zitzke said. “We tried to use that loss as motivation for our next match.”

With set scores of 25-21, 25-20 and 25-18, the Panthers completed their first road trip of the year with a winning record of 2-1.

Wignot set the pace for both teams with her 15 kills, and Leggs also earned double-digit numbers with her contribution of 13. In her best outing of the tournament, Acton recorded 19 digs and earned the praise of her coach and her setter.

“Margy had an exceptional weekend and may have had her best match of the season against UNC Greensboro,” Rens said. “She was physically all over the court, and her passing was on target throughout all three sets.”

Zitzke agreed with her coach and noted the importance of strong defensive play.

“We really stress defense first because without a good pass, you can’t run an offense and get the kills,” Zitzke said. “As a setter, it is nice to know that I have a player like Margy behind me to lead the defense.”

Overall, Rens was pleased with his team’s play in the UCF Invitational and hopes that the Panthers can build from the experience.

“We had moments of great rallies and high-level volleyball, which is encouraging,” Rens said. “Even the loss to UCF can be a way for us to learn how to be ready for good competition that we will face throughout the season.”

The Panthers will return home to play Ohio University on Tuesday, Sept. 13, before hosting Temple, Delaware, Kent State, New Mexico and Morgan State for the Blue and Gold Tournament in the Fitzgerald Field House starting Friday.