Cardinals Down North Carolina 3-1

Sunday, September 29

LOUISVILLE, KY

1:00 p.m.

University of Louisville

7-2

North Carolina

3-8

North Carolina

Louisville

September 29, 2019 | Women's Volleyball

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UofL moves to 2-0 in ACC play

By: DaCosta Phelps

Led by a team effort, the University of Louisville earned a hard-fought 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-23, 25-22) victory over the North Carolina Tar Heels in Sunday afternoon ACC volleyball action inside L&N Credit Union Arena. Melanie McHenry had 18 kills with Aiko Jones and Emily Scott adding 12 kills to lead the Cardinal offense.

With the win, UofL improves to 9-3 overall and 2-0 in ACC play, while North Carolina drops to 3-9 overall and 0-2 in ACC action. Junior Libero Alexis Hamilton led the team defensively, racking up 23 digs and Emily Scott had seven blocks with Anna Stevenson pitching in six blocks. UofL hit .147 with four aces and 13 blocks. UNC was led offensively by Lauren Harrison, who had 19 kills, and defensively by Mia Fradenburg, who accumulated 25 digs.

North Carolina drew first blood in the first set before an 8-2 Louisville run forced a Tar Heels timeout. The Cards continued to keep UNC at arms' length, establishing a 17-11 lead and forcing another UNC timeout. But Heels used a 4-0 run to stay close, thanks in part to three straight Cardinal errors. UNC extended that run to 12-5 to take a 23-22 lead and force a UofL timeout. Two more back-to-back errors would ultimately do the Cards in as UNC went on to take the first set, 25-23. McHenry led the Cards offensively in the first set with five kills, while Hamilton led the Cards on defense with seven digs.

The two teams went back and forth to begin the second set, as neither side led by more than two early on. The set became a series of runs as a 6-1 run gave UofL an 8-5 lead. UNC responded with a run of their own, using a 4-0 stretch to regain the lead. The contest remained tight until a 4-0 Tar Heel run gave UNC a 17-15 lead and forced another Louisville timeout. The Cards came out of the timeout and went on a 6-0 run highlighted by a Mia Stander service ace to retake the lead at 21-17. The Cards went on to win the second set, 25-21. Scott led the Cards on offense in the set with four kills, while Hamilton once again paced the Cards on defense with seven digs.

UofL used a quick 3-0 spurt to take an early 5-2 lead to start things off in the third set. The Cards would maintain a steady lead until a 9-4 Tar Heels run tied the set up at 15. The two sides then traded points until back-to-back UNC kills gave the Heels a 20-18 lead and forced another UofL timeout. Aided in part by a favorable replay reversal, the Cards would then tie things up at 20. The two teams again went back and forth, and with the set tied at 23, back-to-back Tar Heel errors would give UofL the hard-fought 25-23 victory. McHenry put the team on her back both offensively and defensively in the set with four kills and seven digs.

The two sides held yet another tightly contested affair for much of the fourth set, the score knotted 18 tiems with six lead changes, neither team was able to establish a lead larger than two. Down 9-7, UofL used a 3-0 run punctuated by a Scott kill to take a 10-9 lead. The two teams then went back-and-forth, fighting to a 20-20 tie. After UNC took a 21-20 lead, the Cards used a 3-0 run to take a 23-21 lead. UofL went on to take the set, 25-22. Jones set the tone for the Cards offensively with seven kills.

The Cards will look to continue ACC play next Friday at 7 p.m. against Georgia Tech inside L&N Credit Union Arena.