Volleyball bounces back, beats Orange

In a gutsy performance Sunday afternoon, the Pitt women’s volleyball team came from a 2-1… In a gutsy performance Sunday afternoon, the Pitt women’s volleyball team came from a 2-1 deficit to defeat Syracuse 3-2 and earn a No. 2 seed in the Big East Tournament to be held this weekend at Fitzgerald Field House.

With this victory in New York, the Panthers (20-7 overall, 8-2 Big East) earned their fourth 20-win season in five years under head coach Chris Beerman, while it also marked his 99th career win at Pitt.

The Orange (25-6, 8-2) easily rolled over the Panthers in the first game, winning 30-17. Pitt then fought hard to claim the second game 30-28, before losing game three 30-28. Down 2-1 in the match, the Panthers battled back to win game four, 30-27. Pitt then claimed game five, and the match, with a 15-12 win.

“Syracuse is a tough place to play,” Beerman said, following the match, “but we fought hard. This win was a team performance.”

Middle hitter Ashley White made her fourth start in place of injured senior Megan Miller. White had 11 kills and finished with a team-best four blocks. Libero Megan McGrane racked up a match-high 28 digs for the Panthers.

Four Panthers finished with double-doubles for the match.

Gini Ullery took the second-most swings in Pitt history with 88 attempts, and finished the day with a career-best 30 kills and 10 digs. Senior Melissa Whaley added 12 kills and 11 digs off the bench, while setter Lindsey Macke also came off the bench to contribute 62 assists and 12 digs. Freshman Diana Andreyko added 11 kills, 10 digs and four blocks in the victory.

With this win, Pitt ended the 12-match winning streak Syracuse had before Sunday’s match.

The Panthers and the Orange will meet again in the semifinals of the Big East Tournament. After a five-game thriller this weekend, the ensuing match between No. 2-seed Pitt and No. 3-seed Syracuse, is sure to be full of emotion.

“It’s hard to say exactly what will happen,” Beerman said, “but we’re excited to play at home; we’re excited to be in the [Big East] tournament.”

Because Pitt is the defending Big East Champion, the conference tournament will be held on the Panthers’ home court.

Notre Dame earned the No. 1 seed with a win over West Virginia on Sunday. The Fighting Irish will take on No. 4-seed Boston College, which earned the final spot with a win over St. John’s.

Notre Dame and Boston College are set to start at 1 p.m. on Saturday. Pitt and Syracuse will follow at 3:30 p.m.

The winners of the semifinal matches will meet for the Big East Championship Sunday at 2 p.m. The winner will claim the Big East title and an automatic berth into the NCAA Championships.

“We’re in a good position,” Beerman said. “It’s exciting, and we’re happy to be right where we are.”