Volleyball: Panthers lose momentum after win over Syracuse

The Pitt women’s volleyball team had everything going its way in the fifth set of Friday’s… The Pitt women’s volleyball team had everything going its way in the fifth set of Friday’s match against Syracuse, according to head coach Toby Rens.

But it didn’t carry over into Sunday’s game against Marquette.

“I was very pleased with our poise in the final set [in the Syracuse game],” Rens said. “We were focused and ready to play for a win.”

The Panthers (11-15, 5-5 Big East) defeated Syracuse 3-2 on Friday, but were shut out by Marquette (17-7, 8-2 Big East) on Sunday.

“I would like to say that we came to play to win at Marquette, but it seemed like we were flat,” Rens said.

It’s easy to blame the lack of energy on a long string of road matches. The Panthers have played four of their last five matches away from the Fitzgerald Field House.

But according to senior setter Alyssa King, that wasn’t the case.

“We all have a lot of experience playing away matches,” King said. “Personally, I enjoy being on the road and feeding off of a big opposing crowd’s energy.”

The Panthers did succeed in this mental approach against Syracuse, but saw it fall apart in the loss to Marquette.

Pitt 3, Syracuse 2

While King considered experience to be vital when playing on the road, the younger members of the Pitt team helped earn the Panthers their fifth five-set victory of the season.

Sophomore outside hitter Alex Phillips recorded a career-high nine kills on the night, while fellow sophomore Alexa Campbell chipped in seven kills.

“It was great to see some of our younger players step up,” said Rens. “Their kill figures aside, they also helped throw Syracuse out of system by adding to our offensive attack.”

The Panthers lost the first and fourth sets by scores of 25-11 and 25-19, respectively, but came away with 25-22, 25-18 and 15-10 victories in the remaining sets to complete the match win.

For Rens, the most impressive of those sets was the fifth and final one, in which the Panthers showed “excellent poise.”

“In that fifth set, we earned most of our points through kills, blocks and service aces,” Rens said. “Rather than waiting for Syracuse to make a mistake, we were aggressive and it paid off.”

Offensive aggression helped lead the Panthers, but defensive consistency also played a role in the victory as sophomore Margy Acton collected a match-high 18 digs and senior outside hitter Amy Town contributed with 14.

Town’s defensive play, coupled with her 19 kills, resulted in her seventh double-double of the season.

Marquette 3, Pitt 0

Hoping to add another Big East victory to the weekend, the Panthers traveled to Milwaukee to take on Marquette but were met with resistance by a team that Rens considers to be playing excellent volleyball.

“The Big East is a tough conference, but I would say Marquette is at the top of their game and the Big East as well,” Rens said.

That level of play was evident as the Golden Eagles easily defeated the Panthers with set scores of 25-16, 25-7 and 25-18.

Marquette led the match in nearly every offensive category, including kills —  Marquette recorded 41 and Pitt just 18.

The Panthers did, however, manage to out-dig Marquette with strong defense.

“Defensively, I feel that we can play with anyone,” Rens said. “It was our offensive attack that held us back.”

Town, often the Panther’s leader in kills, recorded just four kills in the match. Senior middle hitter Imani Harper led Pitt with seven kills, but Marquette’s Ashley Beyer contributed 14 kills to her team’s victory.

“We just did not have our feet under us to start the match,” Rens said. “After that, it just cascaded in a ripple effect.”

As the Panthers anticipate a return to action against Louisville and Cincinnati this weekend at home, Rens will be glad to be back at Pitt.

“Road trips can definitely take their toll on a team,” Rens said. “It will be nice to get home.”