For one set at least, it looked like the UNC volleyball team might drop its fifth match in a row Friday night. The visiting Wake Forest Demon Deacons had stolen the thunder from Carmichael Arena and won the first set handily, 25-18. This came after the Tar Heels had won the first four points of the match.
But UNC used a concerted effort to stave off every Wake Forest run, and took the next three sets in a row to earn its first ACC win, and first win overall in five matches.
Carolina fought off a 5-0 Demon Deacon run in the second set which knotted the score at 10-10, and despite never building a sizable lead, still never trailed for the rest of the frame. Wake Forest tied the score again at 20-20, but a kill and a block from Nia Parker-Robinson ensured the second set would belong to the home team.
The Deacons held a lead for the first half of the third set, but lost it for good when a 5-0 Tar Heel run turned a 14-12 deficit into a 17-14 advantage. Carolina would use another 6-0 run to put away the set for good, by a 25-18 score. Parker-Robinson, Emily Zinger and Amanda Phegley picked up kills in the run, with a block from Phegley and teammate Kaya Merkler on set point finishing off the frame in style.
A tightly-contested fourth set saw Wake Forest use a 5-1 run to tie things at 21, with an eye toward a first-to-15 fifth set. Two critical kills from Mabrey Shaffmaster and Zinger gave the Tar Heels a slim advantage, before Olivia Diaz took things into her own hands. She served an ace to give Carolina a match point, then decided to simply do it again. A second straight ace sealed the match and sent Wake Forest home emptyhanded.
“This was a defining night for our team,” head coach Joe Sagula said after the match.
The back-to-back aces were Diaz’s first two of the year through 16 matches. Parker-Robinson once again led the team in kills with 17, though Shaffmaster was just one behind. Merkler and Phegley combined for eight blocks at the net.
Now winners for the first time in nearly a month, the volleyball team will try to start another winning streak when Virginia Tech comes to Chapel Hill Sunday afternoon.
“We want to build on this, especially playing well in Carmichael,” Sagula said. “Now we get to focus on our Sunday match and find ways to make continued progress to win the weekend at home.”
Featured image via Carolina Athletics
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