Hurricanes to Face Duke Sunday
Oct. 2, 2004
Coral Gables, Fla. –
The University of Miami volleyball team will try to remain undefeated at home when they face ACC rival Duke Sunday afternoon at 1:00 pm in the Knight Sports Complex. The Hurricanes look to improve their 6-4 overall record and try to make it 3-1 in ACC action.
“Duke is very strong,” noted head coach Nicole Lantagne Welch. “They’ve done very well. So far they are second in the region. It’ll be a great opportunity to take them in our house.”
The Hurricanes come off a dominating three game win over ACC foe Wake Forest. Friday night’s match marked the fifth time this season that the Hurricanes have swept an opponent.
The match saw a solid all-around performance by a fiery Miami squad who, as a team, recorded a .381 hitting percentage to go along with a solid 51 digs. The stifling defense held the Demon Deacons to a .116 hitting percentage while forcing 25 errors as opposed to Miami’s 11.
Individually senior Valeria Tipiana, junior Karla Johnson and redshirt sophomore Francheska Savage each posted double-digit kills to lead Miami. Tipiana registered her second double-double of the season with match-high 15 kills and 10 digs. The rightside hitter also recorded a match-high three service aces. Johnson posted the match’s highest hitting percentage (.611) with 11 kills on 18 swings and no errors. Savage also tallied 11 kills on 19 attempts while recording a match-high four total blocks (1 BS, 3 BA).
Senior Ashley Youngs had a season-high eight kills and 11 digs; three kills shy of a double-double. Classmate Jamie Grass tallied a match-high 14 digs. Sophomore Jill Robinson turned in her fourth double-double of the season with a 44 assist, 10 dig performance.
Duke improved their record 12-3 overall and 3-1 in the ACC after defeating Florida State in five games on Friday night. The Blue Devils also posted consecutive four game wins against ACC rivals Virginia and Maryland. The Blue Devils dropped their first conference match of the season to North Carolina which broke a nine-game, 28-match win streak dating back to a September 4th win over Villanova.
The Blue Devils are led offensively by freshman Carrie DeMange who was named ACC Player of the Week on Sept. 20th. She has registered 4.98 kills per game, which places her third in the league. DeMange also leads the team with 42 blocks including a team-high six solo blocks. Setter Ali Hausfield’s 12.78 assists per game also places her third in the ACC. Defensively the Blue Devils are led by Stephanie Istavan who has recorded 227 digs so far this season. As a team the Blue Devils are ranked 24th in the NCAA with their .271 hitting percentage.
The Hurricanes have not played against the Blue Devils since the team was formed in 2001.
