Duke volleyball hosts Syracuse in rare 11 a.m. Friday contest

<p>Senior Emily Sklar and the Blue Devils can climb up in the ACC standings with a pair of wins this weekend.</p>

Senior Emily Sklar and the Blue Devils can climb up in the ACC standings with a pair of wins this weekend.

The Blue Devils are on a roll, and they have to keep winning this weekend if they want to improve their chances of making the NCAA tournament.

Duke faces off against Syracuse in a critical conference game Friday at 11 a.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium before hosting Boston College Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. After a slow start to the season, the Blue Devils have won five of their last six games and look to continue moving up into the top half of the ACC standings this weekend.

“Luckily, we’re in a tough conference, and we’ve got some really strong opponents coming ahead of us here that make it better for us, as opposed to not being able to play tough competition between now and the end of the season,” Duke head coach Jolene Nagel said. “I want to make sure we’re prepared for both of these opponents and that we’re really playing with a sense of urgency…because that’s what it takes in the ACC in order to be successful.”

The Orange (18-7, 9-5 in the ACC) sit a game ahead of Duke in the conference standings, and they will be a formidable opponent Friday morning. Syracuse’s roster is filled with impressive athletes that have helped the Orange win several points per game with successful blocks. Syracuse has 300.5 blocks so far this season and averages 3.1 blocks per set, the fourth-highest mark in the nation. The Blue Devils (13-11, 8-6) average just 2.0 blocks per set.

The Orange do not rely on one player to carry the defense, either—four players all have double-digit solo blocks this season, led by sophomore middle blocker Leah Levert with 18. Freshman Leah Meyer leads Duke with seven solo blocks, but would be sixth in this category at Syracuse.

“They’re a really physical team,” Nagel said. “They’re experienced and they have great timing, so that’s really helped them be strong at blocking as well.”

The 11 a.m. start to this contest is an unusual time for a Friday match, which would usually take place in the evening. But since the Duke men’s basketball team plays its home opener Friday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the volleyball match got bumped to earlier in the day, and the Blue Devils decided to hold the game in the morning, close to the time players would normally be at practice anyway.

“They have classes in the afternoon and we’d like them to get to some of their classes at least, because it’s tough to miss it when you’re home for an ACC weekend,” Nagel said. “[The preparation] is certainly adjusted a little bit, but we’ll still do many of the same things that we would do before a match that starts much later in the day.”

The Eagles (11-15, 3-11) come to Durham for Sunday’s match near the bottom of the ACC, but they have shown major signs of improvement in recent weeks. After failing to win a set in seven straight matches during the month of October, Boston College rebounded to win two of its last four and took the first two frames against North Carolina last Sunday before losing the match in five.

“They don’t necessarily have the record…that Syracuse does, but they’re always a formidable opponent for us,” Nagel said. “I expect them to be a very scrappy defensive team like they always are and to fight really hard, so we have our work cut out for us.”

Duke has not faced either of these opponents yet this season, but it is 2-0 against the Orange and 16-1 against the Eagles since each team joined the conference, with the lone loss coming at home to Boston College in 2012.

Blue Devil co-captains Emily Sklar and Jordan Tucker must keep making a major impact if Nagel’s squad is to continue its success against these conference foes. Sklar has been consistent all season and led Duke with 29 combined kills last weekend against Georgia Tech and Clemson, but the Blue Devils suffered their only hiccup in almost a month when they were swept by the Yellow Jackets. After an early-season lull, Tucker’s resurgence sparked Duke’s recent winning streak, though she endured a setback with six attack errors during the loss in Atlanta.

“We just need them to continue to be the people that they are for us out there on the court and the leaders that they are for us,” Nagel said. “They’ve done a good job not only in their game…but also emotionally for our team as well.”

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