The women's volleyball team had a roller-coaster weekend at newly renovated Cameron Indoor Stadium, losing a five-game heartbreaker to North Carolina Friday night, 14-16, 10-15, 15-2, 15-12, 24-22, and stomping N.C. State Saturday night, 15-7, 15-3, 15-7.
The Blue Devils (6-10, 2-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) took the Tar Heels (9-6, 3-1 in the ACC) to the limit on Friday night. After losing the first two games of the match, Carolina came out and took the third and fourth games to force a fifth and final game. The fifth game, which is played with rally scoring (where both offense and defense can earn points), went down to the wire. Duke failed to convert seven match points, and eventually, the Tar Heels won on their third match-point chance.
"You have to look at game five differently," said Duke head coach Linda Grensing. "Every sideout counts for a point, so every play is important."
The Blue Devils were led by sophomore Sarah Peifer, who had 30 kills and 23 digs. Duke started the match strong but suffered a bit of a letdown at the start of the third game. Grensing believed that the first few points of that game were the most critical.
"I was disappointed we didn't take care of the first four or five points of the game," she said. "It's hard to come back after that."
The Tar Heels, led by Tori Seibert's 19 kills and 10 digs, were fortunate to escape with a win. The Cameron crowd stayed behind the Blue Devils until the end, standing for the last 10 points of the match, which was Duke's most exciting so far this season.
"I expected this game to be competitive, with a lot of twists and turns," Grensing said. "This team is a bunch of fighters; I was proud of them in that situation."
The game versus N.C. State (5-14, 0-4 in the ACC) Saturday night, though, was a different story altogether. When the Wolfpack celebrated its first point, Duke had already racked up 14. The Blue Devils were led by junior Megan Irvine and sophomore Jami Ediger, who had 17 and 16 kills, respectively.
"I think we were mad after the loss last night and came out fired up," Ediger said.
Duke dominated the entire match, never giving N.C. State an opportunity to make it close. The Blue Devils played a solid all-around game, making few errors.
"We took care of all the little things that make a difference," Grensing said. "We passed well and gave the Wolfpack few opportunities."
Besides passing, Duke controlled the other parts of the game, as well. Senior Kristen Campbell led Duke with 50 assists, 20 more than the entire N.C. State team. The Blue Devils also recorded 11.5 blocks to the Wolfpack's four. Ediger took part in four blocks and raised her arm in her patented celebration each time.
"It's my favorite part of the game," Ediger said. "It's directly stopping someone from doing what they want to do."
Duke will take its 2-2 ACC record on the road next weekend with games against Maryland and Virginia.
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