RALEIGH - The electronic cries after every mistake said it all, bellowing the Wolfpack yell throughout Reynolds Coliseum.
It was a rough weekend for the volleyball team.
Friday night, North Carolina (11-3, 3-0 in the ACC), on an eight-game winning streak, delivered a 3-0 blowout to the Blue Devils (5-8, 1-4). Then it was on to N.C. State Saturday night as the Wolfpack (10-10, 1-3) defeated the Blue Devils as well in a 3-2 match.
Friday night, Carolina took an early 7-0 lead in the first game and never looked back. Problems with ball control and defense plus a number of service errors hindered Duke throughout the game and the entire match. Duke took the initial lead in the next two games with an aggressive offense, but Carolina took advantage of a somewhat weaker defense to steal the lead and take both games.
"We didn't play very good defense tonight at all," coach Jolene Nagel said, "and that hasn't been a problem for us. We weren't catching balls on the block like we normally do, then we weren't getting hands-on with defense, so that was very discouraging. But that's exactly what the problem was tonight; we need a lot more determined defense. Hopefully, as painful as this is, maybe we can learn from it."
The Blue Devils apparently took that lesson to heart and engaged N.C. State in a very competitive match Saturday night.
The Wolfpack took the first game 15-4, creating momentum with a 11-1 lead, while Duke struggled to keep pace. However, in a complete turnaround, Duke went back out on the court and took the second game 15-8. Duke took the lead in the third game, but State bounced back for another win.
The dramatic moment of the match came at the end of the fourth game. N.C. State had the lead 14-9, one point away from victory. Duke rallied in its finest moment of the weekend as it pulled ahead while keeping the Wolfpack at bay. The Blue Devils tied the game at 15 and soon took the game 17-15, creating an opportunity to take the match in a decisive fifth game.
"The team executed, and they served tough and they passed," coach Nagel said. "They executed out there and did what they needed to do."
N.C. State took an early 4-0 lead in the final game. Duke did not demonstrate the stamina that carried it through the second and fourth rounds and the Wolfpack brutally took the game 15-9.
"We've begun to play at different levels at different points of the game rather than playing at a high level the entire game," Nagel said. "We're playing at points from 13 to 15, but at zero to five, we're not pushing. We've got to get some consistency and some discipline out there.
"I think repetition will help us a little bit, but I think right now the team mentally is a bit discouraged because they feel they're working hard, and yet we're not having the success right now. What we've got to do is make sure we turn that around. This is way too early for us to get discouraged."
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