Duke Falls To Miami 3-1 In ACC Opener

Thursday, September 25

Durham, N.C.

7:00 p.m.

Duke University

Miami

Duke Falls To Miami 3-1 In ACC Opener

9/25/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. ? Freshman Lane Carico hammered 21 kills on a team-high .432 hitting percentage to lead the Miami volleyball team to a 3-1 (22-25, 25-15, 25-22, 25-20) win over Duke Thursday evening in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The Hurricanes hit .338 against the Blue Devils (9-4, 0-1 ACC) to keep their unbeaten streak alive and win their second straight ACC match. Paced by Carico's 21-kill effort, Miami made just 14 attack errors and had just one player with more than two faults.

Carico made just two of those faults on her 44 attacks and was one of three Miami (13-0, 2-0 ACC) players to record a double-double as she also picked up 12 digs. Teammate Genny Mayhew also matched her effort with 18 kills and 13 digs while setter Katie Gallagher served up 52 assists and picked up 10 digs.

Duke, meanwhile, received a 22-kill performance from junior outside hitter Rachael Moss and a 12-kill outing from sophomore Becci Burling, but had trouble keeping up with Miami's efficient offensive output. Burling connected on 12 of her 25 attacks and made just one error for a .440 hitting percentage while Moss turned in a .327 clip.

Duke senior middle blocker Jourdan Norman took care of Duke's defense at the net and recorded four blocks, while classmate Aana Wherry and sophomore libero Claire Smalzer manned the floor. Wherry led the way with a career-high 16 digs and 21 errorless service receptions while Smalzer reached double figures for the ninth time this season with 14 digs. Smalzer also picked up 44 Miami serves while making just two errors and contributed 16 errorless serves of her own.

The .236 hitting percentage posted by Duke was the team's lowest clip since a .206 effort in a 3-2 against Georgia on Sept. 6, 2008. The Blue Devils had hit a combined .350 in six matches since playing Georgia before running into Miami's defense. Conversely, Miami's .338 clip was the second-highest hitting percentage against Duke this season behind a .346 mark turned in by No. 13 Middle Tennessee.

“Miami did a great job tonight,” Duke head coach Jolene Nagel said. “They executed very well. I thought we were a step behind in some areas of our game, and we can't afford to do that against a team that's executing so well.”

Miami was just as effective on the defensive end and totaled 9.5 blocks, five of which came from senior Angelica Ellis. The Hurricanes held Norman to eight kills and freshman Sophia Dunworth to seven while giving up just 47 assists to freshman setter Kellie Catanach.

Miami did not have an answer for Duke early in the match, however, as Moss was nearly unstoppable in the opening set and connected on eight of her 14 attacks without an error. Her effort led Duke to a .311 hitting percentage during the opener that was also bolstered by a 4-for-10 performance from Burling and 2-for-5 outing from Catanach that also included 13 assists. Wherry recorded nine of her digs in the opening set along with six errorless serves and service receptions. The Hurricanes jumped out to an early lead in the first set, but could not keep the Blue Devils down as they rallied from an 8-4 deficit with a 6-2 run to take the lead at 12-9. Moss has two kills and a block during the run while Burling also accounted for two points with a kills and a block of her own. Miami would rally back, however, to knot the score at 16-16 before jumping ahead 19-17. After a timeout, Duke forced another tie at 20-20 before Burling put Duke ahead for good with her second kill of the set. Burling would add two more during Duke's final run, including the set-winner with Duke ahead 24-22.

Miami would avenge the opening loss, however, when Carico, Mayhew and Ellis combined for 16 kills and a .448 hitting percentage on the way to a 25-15 win in set two. The trio made just three errors while Miami made just four as a team and hit .417. Duke, meanwhile, could only manage seven kills against the Hurricanes. Norman contributed one of those along with two blocks, but it was not enough to outpace the 19 kills put down by Miami. The Hurricanes got on top early and led by as much as eight points at 17-9.

Miami kept the momentum rolling heading into the third set and came away with a 25-22 victory to jump ahead 2-1 in the match. The Hurricanes did not have a single attack error in the third set and hit .471 to outpace a .286 effort put up by the Blue Devils. Ashley Woods was Miami's top offensive contributor with four kills on six errorless attacks, while Carico, Mayhew, Katie Gallagher and Ali Becker each chipped in three kills. Duke's offense came primarily from Moss, who went 6-for-11 in the set. The set featured 14 tied scores and five lead changes as the teams battled back and forth until Miami broke a 22-22 tie on a kill from Mayhew. Mayhew came through again along with Ellis on a block to put the Hurricanes within one point of clinching the set, which came on a service ace from Carico.

Miami kept up the strong defensive effort in the fourth set and forced eight Duke attacking errors on the way to a 25-20 match-clinching victory. Mayhew paved the way with six kills, while Carico also came through with four. Norman got on track and connected on four of her nine attacks for Duke, but could not help Duke overcome an early deficit that ran as high as nine points at 21-16. Moss and Burling sparked a comeback effort for the Blue Devils with four quick kills, but Carico interrupted the run with two kills of her own to keep Miami ahead 23-20. The Hurricanes then took advantage of a Duke attack error and ended the match when Mayhew came through with her sixth kills of the set.

The Blue Devils will look to avenge the loss on Friday, Sept. 26, when Florida State heads to Durham for a 7 p.m. bout in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke head coach Jolene Nagel will be honored before the match begins for reaching her 400th career victory, which came with a 3-1 win over Delaware last Saturday, Sept. 20.

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