RALEIGH, N.C. – Duke middle blockers Leah Meyer and Jordan Tucker combined for 27 kills and 13 blocks to help the Blue Devils turn a 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 (25-12, 26-28, 16-25, 25-20, 15-12) comeback victory over NC State Sunday afternoon at Broughton High School's Holliday Gym.
Meyer's 14 kills led all players, while Tucker churned out 13 for her fourth match in double-digit kills this season. As a team, Duke racked up a season-best 14.0 blocks with Meyer contributing seven and Tucker six.
“Our middles did a great job of being available,” said head coach Jolene Nagel. “I thought our kids played hard and worked well together. It was a great win for us today.”
Outside hitter Cadie Bates also provided a spark for Duke (7-7, 2-2 ACC), recording her second double-double of the season. Bates added 13 kills and 11 digs to go along with four blocks and three service aces.
“Cadie brings a lot of energy to our team and she's a very positive thinker,” Nagel added.” She made things happen for us.”
NC State (12-4, 1-3 ACC) entered the match as one of the ACC leaders in opponent hitting percentage, but Duke put together an attack-error-free opening frame to hit .423. The balanced Blue Devil effort feature 11 kills, 3.0 blocks and four service aces. Back-to-back blocks from Alyse Whitaker and Meyer gave the Blue Devils an early 9-3 advantage. Duke outscored NC State 16-9 the rest of the way, good for a 25-12 victory.
The two squads traded blows in a closely contested second set that featured 17 ties and seven lead changes. A 7-2 Duke span, culminating with back-to-back Bates' aces, helped erase a one-point deficit and give the Blue Devils a 16-12 lead. The Wolfpack clawed its way back and took a 24-23 lead before Whitaker knotted the score with a kill. Whitaker again came up with the kill to ward off NC State's second set point at 25-24. Duke went ahead 26-25 on Tucker's eighth kill, but NC State came up with a Blayke Hranicka tally and block to seal the set, 28-26.
Hranicka finished with 11 kills, one of four Wolfpack players to reach double digits along with Kaitlyn Kearney (13), Morgan Cormier (11) and Perry Ramsey (10).
After battling to a 7-7 tie, NC State took control of the third frame with a 10-4 stretch. The Wolfpack posted a .423 third-set hitting percentage en route to a 2-1 overall advantage.
Duke and NC State traded long runs in the fourth, resulting in a 17-all stalemate. An emphatic Tucker kill on a free ball put Duke up for good, 18-17. NC State was able to narrow the margin at 21-20, but Duke finished off the frame with four-straight points, including two Meyer kills.
Duke enjoyed a 7-3 fifth-set lead following a Laura Williams' ace before NC State rallied to tie the final frame at 11 points apiece. A Hranicka ace put the Wolfpack up for the first time in the fifth, but Duke sealed the victory with four straight points. Setter Maggie Deichmeister, who also accumulated 51 assists, snuck in a kill to knot the score, 12-12. Bates and Meyer then teamed up on consecutive blocks to establish set point and Deichmeister finished the comeback with an ace.
“We used a lot of different people and I'm really glad we hung tough,” Nagel said. “State is a quality team that always fights hard.”
Defensively, libero Sasha Karelov led all players with 23 digs, helping Duke's defense limit NC State to a .187 hitting percentage.
Duke returns to Cameron Indoor Stadium Friday to host Florida State at 6:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 9 on ESPN3.
#GoDuke
