NOTRE DAME, Ind. — In a season like no other, #14 Notre Dame hosted ACC volleyball inside Purcell Pavilion for the first time during the spring season. The Fighting Irish picked up their fourth consecutive victory with a sweep of NC State (25-12, 25-19, 25-17) on Friday night.
It marked Notre Dame’s fourth sweep of the 2020-21 season. With the victory, the Irish improve to 8-1 (7-1 ACC) while the Wolfpack drop to 5-5 (4-5 ACC).
Freshman Aubrey Hamilton led the Irish with 15 kills. It marked her third game this year with 15 or more kills. Charley Niego followed right behind with her second straight double-double, tallying 12 kills and 10 digs. The junior earned her third double-double on the season and 31st of her career. Caroline Meuth also collected 12 kills.
Zoe Nunez added 38 assists and a game-high 17 digs in the three sets of play.
The Irish hit a season-best .375 while limiting the Wolfpack to a mark of .038, which is the lowest of any Irish opponent
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
Notre Dame exerted its dominance in the opening set, cruising to a 25-12 decision. The Irish boasted a 7-5 advantage in the early going before recording a 12-3 scoring stretch. Notre Dame recorded 16 kills in the first set with a .556 hitting percentage, it’s highest in any frame this season.
Hamilton led the way with six kills, followed by four each from Niego and Meuth. In addition, Nunez dished out 12 assists and notched six digs.
Second Set
The Irish found themselves in a 4-1 hole to start the second set, but rallied to score three straight points to tie the game at four-all.
Kills by Niego, Meuth and Hamilton lifted the Irish to a 5-0 scoring run to go up 14-11 in the set. From there, Notre Dame maintained its 3-to-5 point separation for the remainder of the set, taking it 25-19.
The duo of Niego and Meuth powered the Irish attack with a combined 11 kills in the set. Nunez added 14 assists and five digs. Nancy Kane also stepped up defensively with five digs in the set.
Third Set
It was a back-and-forth battle in the third until the Irish once again found separation midway through the set. Notre Dame fired off a 6-1 scoring run to go up 18-10. The run featured kills from Meuth and Hamilton and a service ace from Hattie Monson. It was smooth sailing from there, as the Irish took it 25-17.
Hamilton added four more kills in the third, while Meuth contributed three. Freshman Lindsay Miller tacked on two kills, including the penultimate point that set up the Irish for the sweep.
Up Next
- #14 Notre Dame closes the weekend with a home match against Miami this Sunday, March 7.
- First serve inside Purcell Pavilion is set for 1:30 p.m. ET and the contest will be streamed live via ACC Network Extra.
—ND—