Hurricanes Take Down Duke in Volleyball, 3-1
Sept. 25, 2008
Durham, N.C. – Katie Gallagher setup 52 assists and ACC Player of the Week Lane Carico knocked down 21 kills to help thrust the University of Miami past Duke University, 3-1 (22-25, 25-15, 25-22, 25-20) on Thursday night in an ACC volleyball matchup held at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C. The win extends the Hurricanes second-best start in school history at 13-0.
Carico, this week’s Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Player of the Week, went head-to-head with Duke’s outstanding outside hitter Rachael Moss who earned the honor two weeks ago (Sept. 9-14) in what turned out to be an exciting match.
Duke (9-4, 0-1 ACC) took the opening set, 25-22 with a late 6-2 run down the stretch aided by kills from Kellie Catanach and Becci Burling. The Hurricanes led 20-19 before an attack error–one of five in the set committed by the Orange and Green, allowed the Blue Devils to tie the match. They would take the lead courtesy a Burling kill.
Not having lost a second set all season long, Miami rallied in “their” set with a match-high 19 kills on 36 swings, collecting a .417 attack percentage in the process. UM also held the Blue Devils to just .143 hitting by allowing just seven kills and three errors.
The Hurricanes (13-0, 2-0 ACC) jumped out to a 10-5 lead when junior outside hitter Genny Mayhew pounded a kill down the line. Duke rallied to cut the lead at 11-8 when Rachael Moss hit one of her match-high 21 kills down the middle. But it wasn’t enough as UM outscored their conference foes 14-7 the rest of the way.
Leading the charge for the `Canes was Mayhew and Carico who combined for 12 points in the set. Angelica Ellis was not to be lost as she registered four kills and a block in the set.
The third and fourth sets were as exciting as the first with the Hurricanes punching in a .471 hitting percentage in the third set while holding Duke to just .167 in the fourth. In the end, however, there was just too much of the Gallagher-to-Carico connection to thwart what is the second-longest winning streak in school history for the UM volleyball team at 15 consecutive matches dating back to the end of the 2007 season.
The current record of 22 matches was set from the end of the 2001 season through 15 matches into the 2002 campaign. Coincidentally, the Hurricanes are chasing both numbers this season as the 15-0 start is the best in school history.
Duke was led on the night by Moss with 22 kills and nine digs, while Burling assisted with 12 kills and four digs. Catanach set the offense with 47 assists, and libero Aana Wherry spurred the defense with 16 digs.
For the `Canes, redshirt senior Ashley Woods was big on the night for the `Canes as she netted eight kills and three blocks (assisted).
Carico led all players with a season-high 21 kills, becoming the first UM player this year to eclipse the 20-kill category. Carico also had 12 digs to extend her double-double streak to four matches. Carico becomes the first Hurricane to collect 20-plus kills since Mayhew accomplished the feat back on Nov. 3, 2007 against Wake Forest.
Mayhew added 18 kills and 13 digs to add another double-double to her efforts on the year, pulling her total to three. Setter Gallagher pitched in her second double-double with 52 assists and 10 digs. She also had six kills to fall just short of a triple-double for the second time this season.
Junior libero/defensive specialist Cassie Loessberg led the defense for the Orange and Green with 16 digs.
With the win tonight, Miami defeats Duke for just the second time ever, pulling the series to 7-2 in favor of the Blue Devils. Prior to tonight, their last win came back on Nov. 6, 2002 … the same season the `Canes advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.
The Hurricanes continue their “Tobacco Road” swing tomorrow night at Wake Forest in Winston-Salem, N.C. The match is slated for a 7 p.m. start with live stats provided by Game Tracker through www.hurricanesports.com.
