No. 5 Pitt women's volleyball overpowers No. 11 SMU in four
🔵🟡 Pitt dominates SMU in 4
No. 5 Pitt clinched its tenth straight win of the season and second over No. 11 SMU, 3-1 on Sunday, Sept. 28. In front of a rowdy Peterson Events Center in Pittsburgh, PA., the Panthers displayed a dominant performance of complimentary volleyball in four sets.
Pitt took the first set, 25-20 over the Mustangs. The block party of a set showcased the strong defenses on both sides of the net, while SMU held the Panthers to just .152 on hitting and power outside Olivia Babcock to just two kills. The Panthers continued to power on, securing the second set 25-22 while Brooke Mosher doubled her offense's hitting percentage to .407.
The Mustangs took control in set three and stayed alive, 28-26. The tight contest included 14 ties and four lead changes throughout. Despite the SMU set win, it was Babcock that shined in the third. The 2024 AVCA Player of the Year tallied 13 kills in set three alone.
The deal was sealed in the fourth set for the Panthers with the decisive 25-21 win. Pitt lead early and controlled the momentum throughout, despite a late rally by the Mustangs to cut the deficit from 10 to four.
Babcock finished the day with a season-high 29 kills on .434 hitting with 17 digs and three blocks. Brooke Mosher lead the Panther offense to .310 hitting with 52 assists, nine digs and a monster block of her own.
With the win, Pitt secured its sixth victory over a ranked opponent this season.
See finals stats here.
🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯🎯
Did you count that right? Yep, that's 29 big ones.
Olivia Babcock had a standout day in Pitt's 3-1 victory over No. 11 SMU. The outside had a slow start in the first set, tallying only two kills as the Panthers relied on her five digs and three blocks in a defensive battle.
But Babcock gained steamed as the match went on, powering 13 kills in the third set alone. She finished with a season-high 29 kills on the day on a .434 clip, four short of her career-high 33 that came in last year's national semifinal. The veteran looked unstoppable today against the Mustangs, leading her team on and off the court.
The Panthers are now 10-2 (2-0 ACC) on the season as they face Clemson on Friday, Oct. 3.
⏳ Pittsburgh timeout
Pitt leads 23-19, but SMU is putting up a fight in a 5-1 scoring run. The Panthers call a timeout to slow the Mustang momentum.
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👏 Big Bayless swing
Blaire Bayless' twelfth kill of the day sends Pitt up 20-12 headed into an SMU timeout.
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🔵🟡 Pitt leads Set 4
The Panthers hold a 15-9 advantage over SMU entering the media timeout after a 4-0 scoring run.
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🫨 THIS SMU RALLY
Check out the rally that kept the Mustangs alive and clinched the set three victory.
SMU FORCES SET 4️⃣ WITH A CRAZY RALLY 😤 x 🎥 ESPN /
— NCAA Women's Volleyball (@NCAAVolleyball)
📈 Mustangs survive, earn Set 3 victory
SMU earned a highly-contested third set victory over Pitt, 28-26. The Mustangs lead early on, needing to win the set to keep the match alive. Pitt never backed down either, with 14 ties and four lead changes just in the third set alone.
The SMU defense was the difference maker, fighting off an impressive performance from Olivia Babcock's 12 kills in set three.
MUSTANG FLIGHT! |
— SMU Volleyball (@SMUVolleyball)
Can SMU fight back as they enter the fourth set down 2-1? Keep up with live stats here.
⏰ 'Stangs call timeout
Pitt holds a set point 25-24 over SMU headed into the Mustang timeout.
Keep up with live stats here as SMU tries to stay alive.
👀 Tied at 24
The third set is even at 24-24. SMU must win this set to stay alive.
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🔴 Panthers lose challenge
Pitt losses a challenge after petitioning a ball called out. SMU is now up 19-18 in the third set.
The Panthers have one challenge remaining, while SMU has none.
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💪 The setter gets the block
Pitt's Brooke Mosher gets in on the fun with a monster block to assist Ryla Jones up front.
SMU leads 17-16. Keep up with live stats here
🫣 OH MY OLIVIA
Olivia Babcock is looking dominant as ever, tallying five kills in the third set already. She helps cut the Panther deficit as SMU leads 11-10.
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🛞 SMU IS ROLLING
The Mustangs are on a 5-0 scoring run early in set three, leading 9-5 over Pitt.
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✌️ Set 2 goes to the Panthers
Pitt secures the set two, 25-22. After a hot start to open up the second set, Pitt held a 6-0 lead over SMU early on. Though the Mustangs fought back and came within one point four different times, the Panthers were able to hold the lead the entire set. Setter Brooke Mosher beautifully orchestrated her offense to a .407 hitting percentage after a slow first set while Blaire Bayless leads Pitt with eight kills on a .333 clip for the day.
The Panthers hold a 2-0 advantage over the Mustangs headed into the third set.
Keep up with live stats here.
⏳ Mustang timeout
SMU calls a timeout late in the second set as Pitt leads 21-19. The Mustangs have had four chances to tie the set after fighting back from a 6-0 deficit to start, but have been unable to get over the hump.
Keep up with live stats here.