SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The Notre Dame Fighting Irish maintain their undefeated record inside of Purcell Pavilion as the Irish (8-2, 2-0) are on a six game win streak after today’s win over Syracuse (2-10, 0-2). The Irish won 26-24, 25-9, and 25-18 for a 5-0 record at home.
Sydney Palazzolo led the Irish with 13 kills and a .588 hitting percentage as she continues to lead the conference with 4.30 kills per set. She was followed by Phyona Schrader with 10 kills, hitting at a .643 clip. Nicole Drewnick dished out 34 assists for the Irish while also recording two solo blocks.
Set One
While both squads struggled to pull away from the other, there were 16 ties and five lead changes in the first set of the day. It was back and forth in set one as the Irish and the Orange swapped points up to the 7-7 mark. Notre Dame captured a 14-11 lead, but a 4-0 run from Syracuse lifted the Orange to a 15-14 advantage. Tied at 23-23, a kill from Schrader followed by an Orange kill made it 24-all. Back-to-back errors from Syracuse gave the Irish their final two points to take home set one 26-24.
Set Two
The Irish dominated set two as they led the entirety of the set with a 7-2 lead to get things started. The Irish extended their lead to seven at 16-9 before going on a 10-0 to close it out, which included four service aces from Palazzolo.
Set Three
Leading 2-0, the Irish looked to complete the sweep and take set three but the Orange weren’t going down without a fight. Trailing 15-13, a solo block from Drewnick sparked a nine point run for the Irish as they claimed a 22-15 advantage. The Irish and Orange traded points until Palazzolo put away one last kill to secure the Irish win 25-18.
Up Next
Notre Dame will host the Louisville Cardinals on Wednesday, Sept. 27 at 7 PM inside of Purcell Pavilion as the Irish look to extend their winning streak.