Duke Rallies for 3-2 Win over Georgia Tech

Friday, September 24

Atlanta, Ga.

7:00 p.m.

Duke University

Georgia Tech

Duke Rallies for 3-2 Win over Georgia Tech

9/24/2010 10:18:00 PM | Volleyball

By: Duke Sports Information

ATLANTA, Ga. - Becci Burling and Sophia Dunworth combined for 31 kills as Duke overcame a 2-1 deficit to take down Georgia Tech 3-2 (26-28, 25-21, 18-25, 25-20, 18-16) in O'Keefe Gymnasium on Friday evening.

Duke (10-2, 2-0 ACC) trailed 2-1 heading into the fourth set, but forced game five by hitting .559 in game four with 19 kills and no attack errors. The Blue Devils again trailed by four points in the fifth set, but fought back to win the two-point battle with consecutive scores on a kill from Christiana Gray and a match-winning service ace from Amanda Robertson.

"We really gave a great team effort tonight," Duke head coach Jolene Nagel said. "I was really impressed with how everyone hung tough and focused when they had to. We didn't necessarily have things running smoothly out there; everyone really had to just dig deep and claw and scratch to get the win tonight.

"Georgia Tech has such a good team, and this was just a fight between both teams. Both teams just fought their hearts out, and we really had to dig deep and fight hard to come out with a win."

Dunworth led the team with 16 kills and a .389 hitting percentage and posted nine of her kills over the final two games. She was a flawless 6-for-9 in the fourth-set victory and 3-for-7 in the fifth-set win. Burling, meanwhile, posted 15 kills and a .306 hitting percentage while senior classmate Claire Smalzer also reached double figures with 11 kills.

Freshman libero Ali McCurdy, who entered the match ranked third in the ACC with 178 digs, added 26 more to her season total to help hold Georgia Tech (7-6, 0-2 ACC) to a .214 hitting percentage. The Yellow Jackets ranked second in the ACC with a .271 team hitting percentage prior to the match, but had trouble getting the ball past McCurdy, who reached 20 digs for the sixth time this season, and Smalzer who added 13 pickups.

Georgia Tech has now lost two straight ACC matches in five sets. The loss to the Blue Devils followed a 3-2 loss at Clemson in which the Yellow Jackets also fell by two points in the fifth set.

Georgia Tech outside hitter Monique Mead, who was the 2009 ACC Freshman of the Year, almost single-handedly carried the offense and finished with 30 kills and a .339 hitting percentage. With the performance, Mead became the first ACC player to surpass 200 kills on the season.

Duke dropped in seven service aces with Burling, Robertson and Smalzer each contributing two. Setter Kellie Catanach, who ranks fifth on Duke's all-time assists list, dished out 54 assists and was only one dig shy of notching a double-double.

Duke held the lead for the majority of the opening set, but allowed Georgia Tech to tie the match at 22-22 before the Yellow Jackets eventually pulled out a 28-26 win. The Blue Devils trailed 24-23, but fought off match point with consecutive scores on a block from Gray and a kill from Robertson. The Yellow Jackets returned the favor, however, and spoiled Duke's match-point opportunity with consecutive points. Duke would tie the score once more at 26-26 before Mead put the match away for the Yellow Jackets with back-to-back kills.

Duke dialed up the offense in the second set and hit .375 on the way to a 25-21 win. The Blue Devils totaled 16 kills in that set while making only four attack errors. Duke never trailed after breaking an 11-11 tie in that game. Georgia Tech turned the tables in game three, however, and used a late 8-1 run to clinch a 25-18 victory.

With the Yellow Jackets holding on to a 2-1 lead after the third game, Duke put up a perfect game four to tie the match and send it into a deciding fifth set. The Blue Devils went 19-for-34 with no attack errors and won 25-20. Duke never trailed after taking a 2-1 lead, thanks to a six-kill performance from Dunworth who was one of six Blue Devils with multiple kills.

With the score tied at 2-2 after Duke's fourth-set victory, Georgia Tech jumped out to a quick 5-1 lead in game five. The Blue Devils would not be held down, however, as they fought back to tie the match at 7-7 and battled to a 16-16 deadlock. After having their previous match-point opportunity spoiled by the Yellow Jackets, the Blue Devils went to Gray, who connected on a kill to give Duke a 17-16 advantage, and then to Robertson who clinched the match with a service ace.

Duke will continue its weekend road trip on Saturday with a road trip to face Clemson in Clemson, S.C., at 6 p.m.

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