It is not often that the Blue Devils face two losses in a row, and they aren’t looking to start now. After a 3-2 loss to Virginia Tech on the road last weekend, Duke will seek to put two more games in the win column against ACC opponents Pittsburgh and Syracuse.
No. 20 Duke will host Pittsburgh at Cameron Indoor Stadium Friday at 6:30 p.m. in the teams' first meeting of the season. The Panthers are fresh off a home sweep against Syracuse and are looking to improve their conference record with just one month left in the regular season.
“They are going to be a really good team,” head coach Jolene Nagel said. “They are going to come in here and play really well because they also lost this past weekend to Virginia Tech. They are going to be ready to play and they are having a great year.”
Pittsburgh (19-4, 7-3 in the ACC) boasts two of the conference’s strongest offensive players and one of the ACC's best defensive players. An offensive strength for the Panthers is their serving game—Lindzey Zitzke and Delaney Clesen rank second and fifth in the conference with 0.43 and 0.36 aces per set, respectively. On the defensive side, Clesen, the Pittsburgh libero, anchors the Panthers with 4.53 digs per set. That number puts her second in the ACC, trailing only Duke’s Sasha Karelov, who averages 5.42 digs per set.
“We have to know our opponent, be familiar with our opponent, and at the same time make sure that we are taking care of business on our side. We need to bring our A-game in order to be successful against them,” Nagel said.
With junior outside hitter Emily Sklar on track for another standout season, the Blue Devils (17-5, 9-2) continue to work toward their goal of taking home their second ACC title in as many years. Duke currently sits in third place in the conference behind North Carolina and Florida State with seven games remaining in the regular season. The Blue Devils will go head-to-head with both the Tar Heels and the Seminoles, providing an opportunity to climb back into title contention.
Sklar became just the 23rd player in Duke history to knock down 1,000 career kills during the game at Virginia Tech, a mark very few players reach before their senior year. At fourth overall in the conference in kills, Sklar will look to continue leading the offense for the remainder of the season with an average of 4.07 kills per set.
The Blue Devils will find themselves in Syracuse, N.Y., facing the Orange Sunday, also the first time the two teams have faced each other this season. Four out of Duke's five losses this season have come on the road. Although Syracuse (8-15, 1-10) sits at the bottom of the conference, it is important that the Blue Devils take home a road win in order to improve their confidence playing away from Cameron Indoor Stadium.
“We are not going to pay attention to any of those records because they really mean nothing," Nagel said. "Everyone has had a different strength of schedule, so the record doesn’t mean all that much".
Despite having a losing record, Syracuse has dangerous potential on the offensive attack. Outside hitter Silvi Uattara ranks in the top five in the ACC in kills, knocking down 3.73 per set. Additionally, the Blue Devils' offensive weapons must be prepared for Leah Levert and her strong defensive skills—the freshman averages 1.37 blocks per set.
“Hopefully our older players can help our younger players understand that this is the ACC," Nagel said. "On any given night, if you don’t bring your best possible game, you’re not going to be able to win."
With the end of the regular season fast approaching, every game is as important as the next. The much-anticipated Florida State game is just one weekend away, but as Nagel explained, it’s important to focus on one game at a time.
“Next weekend is next weekend. As a team, we need to make sure that all we worry about is the next match that is ahead of us,” Nagel said.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.