Upcoming Event: Volleyball at Coastal Carolina on August 28, 2026 at 6 p.m.
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6 p.m.
Volleyball
at Coastal Carolina
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Sunday, October 19
Durham, N.C.
1:00 PM
Duke University
0
vs
3
North Carolina
No. 11 UNC Snaps No. 21 Duke?s 10-Match Win Streak
10/19/2014 3:55:00 PM | Volleyball
DURHAM, N.C. – No. 11 North Carolina handed No. 21 Duke its first loss in Cameron Indoor Stadium this season, snapping the Blue Devils' 10-match win streak with a 3-0 (25-23, 26-24, 25-20) decision Sunday afternoon.
North Carolina (15-2, 6-1 ACC) found a way to edge Duke (15-4, 7-1 ACC) in first two sets, both closely contested, before pulling away late in the third. The Blue Devils led in both kills, 46-43, and digs, 55-50, but the Tar Heels totaled 11.5 blocks to Duke's 3.0.
“[North Carolina is] a very good blocking team,” said head coach Jolene Nagel. “They're a very physical team. Today, they blocked better than we did. We've got some other strengths that I think at times showed, but we didn't do it enough to make the difference.”
Duke's pair of sophomore middle blockers – Alyse Whitaker and Jordan Tucker – both turned in career-high performances to pace the Blue Devils. Whitaker knocked down a career-best 15 kills on .393 hitting, while Tucker totaled a career-high 14 kills also on .393 hitting.
Despite Duke's success setting its middle blockers, the North Carolina defense was able to take away outside hitters Emily Sklar and Jeme Obeime, who combined for 10 kills.
Chaniel Nelson led the Tar Heels with 13 kills, five digs and six blocks. The redshirt senior middle blocker hit .423 and committed just two errors on 26 attempts. Outside hitter Lauren McAdoo added 11 kills on .435 hitting, helping North Carolina post a .304 team hitting percentage.
Setter Kelsey Williams notched her fifth overall and third consecutive double-double. Williams dished out 42 assists and picked up 12 digs to go along with a pair of blocks. Williams was one of three Blue Devils to total a team-high 12 digs, joining Sklar and libero Sasha Karelov.
“We were doing some things pretty well, but when you're playing a good opponent and the two of you are pretty comparable and tight, you just can't afford any miscommunications,” Nagel said. “I feel like we fell short at the end of the first two sets. We just have to execute a little bit better against a good team. We fell short in doing that.”
The first set saw 12 ties and five lead changes before North Carolina rallied late to secure the 25-23 decision. Rightside hitter Breanna Atkinson dropped her fifth kill of the opening frame to put Duke on top 23-21, but Duke was unable to hold off UNC in the end. The Tar Heels won the final four points, including two Nelson kills.
Much like the first frame, the second set saw the two teams battle back and forth, resulting in 12 ties. A UNC attack error put Duke on top 19-17 before back-to-back Tar Heel kills knotted the score again. Tied at 21-all, UNC's Taylor Treacy came up with the kill then teamed up with Paige Neuenfeldt on the block to give the Tar Heels a 23-21 margin. Whitaker sent down her eighth second-set kill to stall the run and Williams added a kill to again tie the score. The two teams traded kills – one from Neuenfeldt and one from Tucker – before North Carolina clinched the 26-24 victory with kills from Victoria McPherson and Nelson.
An 8-5 Duke lead in the third set transformed into a 17-13 deficit following a North Carolina run that featured two kills each from McAdoo and McPherson. Duke trimmed the margin to two at 16-18, but would come no closer the rest of the way. North Carolina won the final three points of the sealed the set, 25-20, with a block.
Duke returns to action Friday, Oct. 24 as the Blue Devils host Clemson at 6:30 p.m. in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
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