In the 1994 film "Forrest Gump," the titular character's mom told him that life was a box of chocolates and that “you never know what you’re going to get.”
And though Tom Hanks wasn’t present at Duke volleyball’s two contests in Durham this weekend, what he learned on the screen from Sally Field rang true.
Duke suffered a hard-fought loss to No. 11 Georgia Tech (15-25, 16-25, 30-28, 22-25) Friday evening but came back Sunday afternoon with a five-set win (29-27, 17-25, 20-25, 25-16, 15-9) against Clemson, earning head coach Jolene Nagel her 475th career win at Duke. And while the Yellow Jackets have continued to find consistent success in conference play, Sunday’s match between the Blue Devils and Tigers was a matchup of two teams still searching for their respective storylines for the season.
Clemson’s squad has been hoping to find the recipe for more back-to-back victories, as the Tigers haven’t been able to notch more than a three-game win streak this season. Meanwhile in Durham, Duke (11-8, 2-6 in the ACC) has had to work to overcome strings of injuries that have forced last-minute lineup switches and new offensive strategies.
And when each of the five sets on Sunday were defined by completely different players and skill sets from each team, Duke fans may have felt like they were picking from boxes of chocolate, still wondering what they can consistently expect from this team going forward. Ultimately their question was answered.
The Blue Devils’ first point Sunday was fueled by a block from graduate student setter Devon Chang and sophomore middle blocker Rylie Kadel, and the success of both teams also relied on the skill of their defense for the rest of the set. It seemed as though no matter how high freshman outside hitter Kerry Keefe leapt and how sharp she swung across the court, there was always a Clemson player waiting to dig out her attempts.
As the Blue Devil block strengthened moving into the second set, the Tigers were forced to rely more on their middle blockers for offensive success. Rather than feeding junior Camryn Hannah from the right side, senior setter McKenna Slavik tried to find opportunities for her in the middle, moving her around with slides that helped her swing through gaps in Duke’s block. Junior middle blocker Colleen Finney also came alive in the second set for Clemson (11-9, 2-6), with one swing on a quick backset sneaking through a gap between Kadel and freshman outside hitter Kerry Keefe’s block, forcing a Duke timeout.
“What was frustrating early on is that it’s almost like they weren’t paying enough attention to their hitters in their lane and they were kind of getting burned,” Nagel said of Duke’s blocking cohort. “And they were trying to help in the middle, but we needed to refocus and get back to where our priority was: to take care of their hitter in their lane first. … But I think once we understood that and started to do that, we did much better.”
Rachel Richardson found her momentum for the Blue Devils in the third set. The sophomore outside hitter added two sets to an early eight-point run by the Blue Devils and scored a block against Clemson’s senior middle blocker Ani Clark that kept the Blue Devils competitive later on. She also worked quietly throughout the match, passing consistently to set up opportunities for Keefe and senior outside hitter Gracie Johnson to lead the Blue Devils offensively.
“She played some good defense today, was an effective hitter, and got a couple blocks for us—she did well all around,” Nagel said.
Duke’s match against the Yellow Jackets Friday is a loss on the record, but there were still bright sports for the Blue Devils, including 17 digs from acting libero Nikki Underwood and a career high 13 kills from Kadel. With an exciting win in the third set, Duke carried the momentum into Sunday.
“I liked how we got the third set, and going into the fourth set, there was a certain amount of energy out there and effort being given,” Nagel said. “And we were focused, but we were also really playing free and going after it. … And we knew that would help us in our fight to get the match [Sunday].
"We needed to go after it like that—we needed to give great effort and be locked in. If we can find that magic to get that focus and effort going every time, that will really be helpful for us."
This season has seen a number of storylines for the Blue Devils. There’s been a nine-game win streak and a conference losing streak. Like against Georgia Tech, they can lose a set by 10 or more points and win the next in a nail-biter. During each match, fans have seen different narratives within the team’s play—some games are stolen from Duke due to unforced errors, and others feature career-high performances; sometimes it’s a story of the offensive power for Duke, while others are a story of the defense.
At the end of the day, this season is defined by another famous idea: expect the unexpected.
Duke will be back in Cameron Indoor Stadium for a match against N.C. State Wednesday at 8 p.m.
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Leah Boyd is a Pratt senior and a social chair of The Chronicle's 118th volume. She was previously editor-in-chief for Volume 117.