No. 1 Pitt Volleyball Defeats Notre Dame

No. 1 Pitt Panthers volleyball defeated Notre Dame at Fitzgerald Field House.

Pitt Volleyball Celebrates a well deserved point / Courtesy of Pitt Athletics

PITTSBURGH -- No. 1 Pitt Panthers volleyball struggled more than expected, but still defeated Notre Dame in front of a sold-out Fitzgerald Field House.

The Panthers (19-1 overall, 9-1 ACC) win their fourth straight match, sweeping both the Cal Golden Bears and No. 5 Stanford Cardinal last weekend, plus a five-set thriller over their rival in the No. 4 Louisville Cardinals on Oct. 25, all at home.

Both teams kept it close early on in the first set, but a 5-0 run for Pitt gave them a 16-10 lead, one they wouldn't relinquish, en route to a 25-14 set victory.

Pitt outhit Notre Dame .448 to .094 in the first set, while sophomores in outside hitterTorrey Stafford, who led with six kills and .750 hitting, and right side Olivia Babcock, who added five kills and hit .571, starred in the period.

The Panthers earned a sizable advantage early in the second set, 9-2 and increased it to 15-8, burning both timeouts for the Fighting Irish.

Notre Dame would manage to cut the lead down to 23-20 going on a 7-3 run, but back-to-back kills from outside hitter Blaire Bayless and Olivia Babcock won the second set for Pitt, 25-20. Babcock led Pitt with six kills in that second set.

The Fighting Irish took an early leads of 6-3 and 9-6 in the third set, but the Panthers battled back with a 5-0 run to take an 11-9 lead themselves.

Notre Dame would then go on an 11-3 run to build a 20-14 lead, with three blocks and eight kills.

Pitt used a 6-2 rotation, putting in senior setter Nisa Buzlutepe and Bayless in at right side, in place of senior setter Rachel Fairbanks and Babcock, but Notre Dame would hold on and win the third set, 25-22.

Fighting Irish freshman outside hitter Morgan Gaerte led her team with five kills and added two blocks in the third set.

Notre Dame continued to lead early on in the fourth set, with advantages of 8-4 and 12-9, putting pressure on Pitt.

Stafford made back-to-back kills and Babcock got one of her own to tie it up at 12, but the Fighting Irish would stay in the lead at 14-13.

Graduate student hitter Cat Flood came up with important plays throughout this match for Pitt, with three consecutive kills to cap a 6-0 run, giving them a 19-14 lead.

The Panthers would stay strong and finish the Fighting Irish off with a 25-19 set victory to win the match.

Pitt will head back out on the road next weekend, starting with Virginia on Nov. 1, who recevied votes in the last AVCA Coaches Poll.

Make sure you bookmark Inside the Panthers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage, and more!

• Pitt Rises Up AP, Coaches Polls
• New Pitt AD Discusses Non-Revenue Sports
• Pitt HC Plays Down WVU Trash Talk
• Watch: Pitt Secret Scrimmage Highlights vs. Cincinnati
• Pitt vs. SMU Kickoff, TV Channel Announced

Follow Inside the Panthers on Twitter: @InsidePit