Panthers split weekend

Pitt’s volleyball team went the distance in its two weekend matches, in addition to… Pitt’s volleyball team went the distance in its two weekend matches, in addition to traveling almost 800 miles in between games at Marquette and Syracuse.

The Panthers defeated the Golden Eagles (10-11, 6-3 Big East) in a close five-set match. Against the Orange, the Panthers went five games again but failed to record a win.

Pitt is now 17-7 overall and 6-3 in conference play.

Pitt returns to the Fitzgerald Field House on Friday for a 5 p.m. showdown with Long Island for “Inspiring Pitt Pride Night,” before traveling to Seton Hall for a 2 p.m. match on Sunday.

Pitt 3, Marquette 2

Diana Andreyko, Stephanie Ross and Azadeh Boroumand all had double-doubles for the Panthers, and the team needed every one of their points to scrape past Marquette.

The Panthers had a lot of catching up to do in the first game, when the Golden Eagles raced out to an 8-2 lead, but Pitt came back to take an 18-16 lead. Pitt, however, could not hold onto its advantage, and Marquette won the opener, 30-25.

The Panthers went out to make a statement in game two. Though Marquette tied the game at 20, Pitt didn’t relent and took a 28-23 lead. Pitt put the game away with two kills.

Pitt jumped in front in game four with a 9-5 lead, and that lead increased to 17-7 and then by 13 at 22-9. Marquette did some rallying of its own, cutting the Panther lead to eight at 25-17. But eight points was still a safe enough lead for Pitt to hold on to a 30-23 final.

Game five was tied five times before the Panthers took a 9-5 advantage. Marquette remained persistent and tied the game at 12, but once again Andreyko came through.

Her 20th kill of the match won the final game at 15-13, giving Pitt its fourth straight win. Andreyko also had 13 digs, while Ross’ double-double consisted of 10 kills and 21 digs.

Boroumand was solid once again, with 50 assists in addition to 10 kills. She also added six blocks, which was second to Jessica Moses’ seven. Meagan Dooley also contributed 16 kills.

Monica Renfrow recorded a triple-double for the Eagles with 10 kills, 51 assists and 14 digs.

Syracuse 3, Pitt 2

Stephanie Ross had a career-high 36 kills, but it wasn’t enough for Pitt to end its grueling road trip with a sweep. The Panther winning streak ended on Sunday, when the Orange took a five-game set of their own.

In game three, the Orange took a 20-14 lead, as Pitt rallied back to tie the game at 29, thanks to Dooley’s kill, before Syracuse scored the next two points to win, 31-29. Game four was much of the same with the Orange jumping out to an early lead, but the Panthers tied it up at 24.

Syracuse broke a 27 all tie with two kills, but Dooley and Ross each had kills to tie the game up. With the game tied at 30, Ross put up an ace and Moses knocked a kill to give Pitt a 32-30 win to even the match.

Pitt tried to go home happy, when Moses and Dooley’s block gave them a 7-4 upper hand in game five, but the Orange went on a 6-1 run to take the lead for good. Cheryl Cobbina’s kill gave Syracuse a 15-12 decision in the final game. Her 27 kills led the Orange. Ross also had 11 kills to give her another double-double.

Andreyko also had her second double-double of the weekend with 18 kills and 16 digs. Libero Michelle Rossi had 17 digs of her own and fellow freshman Kim Kern’s nine blocks led the team.

Head coach Chris Beerman could not be reached for comment.