No. 7 Pitt volleyball (16-3, ACC 7-1) suffered its first conference loss over the weekend as it was swept at No. 5 Louisville (16-2, ACC 7-1) on Friday night. But the Panthers quickly recovered on Sunday afternoon in South Bend, Indiana, by sweeping Notre Dame (10-6, ACC 4-4).
Here are some of my takeaways from the two games over the weekend.
Defense wins championships
In the the Panthers’ two games over the weekend, the winner came down to which team’s defense had the better performance.
Against Louisville, the Panthers came into the game leading the nation in blocks per set with 3.21. But the Panthers’ defense didn’t look like they were number one in the nation in blocks against the Cardinals.
The Cardinals held Pitt to a season-low in blocks with only three, which is five less than any other game all year for the Panthers. Meanwhile, the Cardinals’ defense doubled the Panthers in blocks with six.
On top of Pitt’s front-row defense struggling, the Panthers’ back-row defense also had a bad night. They had only 31 digs all game, which is their fourth-lowest total of the season.
With the Panthers’ front and back row defense struggling, the Cardinals’ offense wound up hitting 0.388. This is the best a team has hit against the Panthers all season by 0.153. It is also the third-best the Cardinals have hit in a game all season.
Unlike the Panthers, the Cardinals’ back row defense played phenomenally against the Pitt’s star-studded offense. Junior libero Elena Scott led the charge for the Cardinals’ back row, as she looked capable of making a play on every ball that came over the net.
Statistically, Scott only tallied eight digs and two assists, but she means way more to the Cardinals than those measly statistics. Scott’s play in the back row caused a frustrated Panther offense to hit 0.258, which is significantly lower than their 0.300 average throughout the season.
Against Notre Dame, the Panthers’ defense returned to form and outplayed the Fight Irish throughout.
The Panthers’ front row returned to form, outperforming their best in the nation 3.21 blocks per game. Pitt had a total of 13 blocks in its three sets played against the Fighting Irish. Graduate student middle blocker Chiamaka Nwokolo was especially a force at the net for the Panthers as she had seven blocks of her own, tying the Fighting Irish’s team total for the game.
The Panthers’ back row didn’t even need to do much for the team against the Fighting Irish, as Pitt’s front row blocked everything. But for the majority of balls that passed the Panthers block, the back row made a play. Pitt’s’ all-around defense caused the Fighting Irish to hit 0.100.
The Panthers need to find a way to stop Anna DeBeer
Louisville senior outside hitter Anna DeBeer is one of the best players in the ACC, and she showed the Panthers that on Friday Night. DeBeer did everything for the Cardinals, and the Panthers couldn’t stop the senior from dominating.
DeBeer finished the matchup against the Panthers with a 0.448 hitting percentage and a match-leading 15 kills. Along with DeBeer’s dominance offensively, she also gave the Cardinals plenty of help defensively with 10 digs and added an ace on top of all this production.
This isn’t the first time DeBeer has made a huge difference for the Cardinals against the Panthers. In last season’s Final Four matchup, DeBeer added 15 kills, seven digs, three blocks and a jaw-dropping amount of aces with five. Her performance helped the Cardinals advance to the National Championship game against Texas.
The key for the Panthers to come out as victors when they face the Cardinals again at the Petersen Events Center on Nov. 18 is to minimize the production from the immensely talented DeBeer. This is no easy task, but it’s necessary to beat the Cardinals.
Three positive takeaways
Since 2014 — head coach Dan Fisher’s second year as the head coach for Pitt volleyball — the Panthers are 35-8 following a loss. Additionally, since the 2021 season, Pitt is a perfect 9-0 coming off a loss, only losing three total sets following a defeat in the past three seasons.
The Panthers also played in front of 11,461 fans on Friday Night at the KFC Yum! Center against Louisville. Although the Panthers didn’t get the result they wanted against the Cardinals, the young Panther squad did get a good look at what postseason play will look and feel like.
Pitt’s junior setter and right-side hitter Rachel Fairbanks deserves ACC Player of the Year. Her performance against Notre Dame showcased some of the best volleyball there is to offer. She finished hitting 0.455 with five kills, added five digs, four blocks, 27 assists and an ace to top things off. And the statistics still don’t even say enough about her performance on Sunday. She was everything for the Panthers in their sweep over the Fighting Irish.