TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Four players notched double-digit kills, but #14 Notre Dame fell to Florida State in five sets (25-21, 25-23, 12-25, 16-25, 11-15) on Friday evening inside Tully Gymnasium.
The loss was Notre Dame’s (9-2, 8-2 ACC) first of the spring and snapped a five-match win streak dating back to the fall.
Charley Niego (14K), Caroline Meuth (12K), Lindsey Miller (11K) and Aubrey Hamilton (11K) each collected double-digit kills while Hannah Thompson added nine kills.
Hattie Monson tied for a game-high 17 digs while Nancy Kane added 15 digs, Zoe Nunez collected 11 digs and Niego added 10 digs to notch her third double-double in the last four matches.
Nunez also collected 43 assists in the five sets of play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
A trio of kills by Hamilton and two blocks by Miller helped propel the Irish to an 11-3 advantage to open play. The Irish extended their lead to 16-6 with a 4-0 run that included an ace by Monson. Florida State got back in the frame with six straight points to get within two at 18-16.
Notre Dame held at least a two-point advantage the rest of the way, and an ace by Niego sealed a 25-21 set win for the visitors. The Irish racked up 13 kills and hit .273 in the first stanza.
Second Set
The Irish broke a 5-all deadlock with a 4-0 run, which included two aces by Nunez and two kills by Meuth, to go up 9-5. Florida State earned four straight points to get within one at 15-14, but Nunez and Niego answered with back-to-back kills to put the Irish up three.
Florida State made it a one-point contest on three more occasions, but the Irish never relinquished the lead and a kill by Niego gave Notre Dame a 25-23 win in set two.
Third Set
Two separate 4-0 runs helped the Seminoles earn a 15-7 lead in the third set. The hosts maintained control of the frame and forced a fourth set with a 25-12 win.
Fourth Set
Florida State opened the fourth frame with a 6-1 run to force an Irish timeout. The Irish got back within three with a 3-0 run to make it 14-11, but the Seminoles answered with four consecutive points to go up 18-11. Florida State held on to take the fourth set, 25-16, and force a decisive fifth frame.
Fifth Set
The Seminoles broke a 4-all tie with a 4-1 run to take an 8-5 lead. Kills by Niego and Thompson brought Notre Dame back within one at 10-9 before Florida State earned the next three points to lead 13-9. Meuth notched back-to-back kills to make it 13-11, but the Seminoles held on to take the match with a 15-11 triumph in set five.
Up Next
- #14 Notre Dame closes its weekend in Tallahassee with a 3 p.m. ET matchup against Virginia Tech on Saturday (March 13).
- Saturday’s match between the Irish and Hokies will not be streamed.
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