NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The fifth-ranked Notre Dame volleyball team (4-1, 4-1 ACC) fell to No. 10 Pittsburgh in four sets (25-23, 19-25, 23-25, 17-25) on Sunday afternoon inside Purcell Pavilion.
Caroline Meuth led the Irish attack with 14 kills while freshman Aubrey Hamilton added 11 kills. Zoe Nunez finished with 43 assists in the four sets.
Meuth added 11 digs for her second double-double of the weekend, and Nancy Kane earned a team-high 19 digs while Hattie Monson added 17 digs.
Meuth and Lauren Wenzel tied with a team-high six blocks.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Set
An ace by Monson helped the Irish jump out to a 4-1 lead to open play before Pitt used a 3-0 run to even the frame at 7-all. The sides worked to a 9-9 tie before three straight Irish points put the hosts up 12-9.
From there the Panthers got within one on eight different occasions, including at 24-23, but a kill by Wenzel clinched a 25-23 set win and gave the Irish a 1-0 lead.
As a team, the Irish hit .333 in the frame with Meuth notching five kills and Bent adding four. Monson notched seven digs in the set.
Second Set
The teams worked to a 6-6 tie before Pitt earned seven of the next eight points to go up 13-7. The Irish answered with three straight points to make it 13-10 before back-to-back Panthers points gave the visitors a 15-10 lead. Notre Dame got within three again at 22-19, but Pitt held on to take the set, 25-19, and even the match.
Third Set
The Panthers opened the third set with a 5-1 lead before the Irish got back within one at 8-7. After Pitt took a 12-7 lead, the Irish answered with a 4-0 run to make it 12-11. Pitt responded with five consecutive points to go up 16-11 and force a Notre Dame timeout. The Panthers stayed in control until the Irish roared back with an 8-2 run to get within one at 24-23. However, an Irish service error clinched a 25-23 set win for the visitors.
Fourth Set
Pitt opened the frame with a 6-3 advantage before the Irish converted the next three points to make it 6-6. The sides worked to a 12-12 deadlock but Pitt earned four straight points to go up 16-12. The Irish worked to make it 17-15, but the Panthers answered with a 3-0 run to restore a five-point advantage. Pitt held on to take the frame, 25-17, and earn the four-set victory.
UP NEXT
The No. 5 Irish close out the fall slate with a pair of road matches next weekend (Oct. 23-24) at Boston College. Both contests are set for 8 p.m. ET and will be streamed live via ACC Network Extra.
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—ND—