Volleyball’s attempt to end losing streak falls short

WASHINGTON, D.C. — With its losing streak at three matches after a heartbreaker at Delaware, the North Carolina women’s volleyball team tried to turn things around against American University on Sunday.

Playing at Bender Arena, UNC had a fan base outnumbering American’s. Despite the perceived effect of limiting home court advantage, the Tar Heels fell 3-1.

The first set stayed neck and neck with seven ties and four lead changes. American finally sealed the game 25-22 with tough play from its blockers.

The Tar Heels picked it up in the second and dominated the Eagles in a 25-15 win. UNC found success when it managed to sneak a ball past the Eagles’ front line.

In the third set, North Carolina rallied back from three down to knot the game at 15 and again at 18. Still, the Eagles broke it open and won 25-21. American went on to win the fourth set 25-23 after UNC blew a seven-point lead.

Perhaps the biggest challenge for UNC was defending against the Recht twins. Standing at 6 foot 8 inches each, Ann and Claire Recht are the tallest female twins in the world.

Many of the Tar Heels’ attacks found the hands of the Eagles’ middle blockers. But American won the match with a good offensive spread as four different hitters had double-digit blocks.

 “I thought we prepared well for them,” coach Joe Sagula said. “But they had really good balance.”

 UNC lacked balance on its side. Though Suzanne Haydel had 20 kills in the match, the Tar Heels only had one other hitter with double-digit kills.

“We have five hitters on the court. We have to get three to four effective hitters per match,” Sagula said. “One of the things we thought we had was balance, that we could get double-digit kills from all five hitters on the court.”

Still, the high level of production from Haydel was something Sagula needed.

 “If she continues to play at that level, we’re going to be in really good shape,” Sagula said. “She played like we needed her to play.”

Haydel acknowledged that the competition for playing time forced her to step up her game.

“We have a lot of outsides on our team, so it’s really competitive,” Haydel said. “It really forces the veteran outside hitters to step up and put a ball down and do your job.”

Defensively, the Tar Heels looked like an improved team from last weekend’s Carolina Classic. Going up against a tough American frontline, libero Kaylie Gibson had impressive play, earning her a vote of confidence from Sagula.

“For me for defense, I have just been trying to stay confident,” Gibson said. “This last week in practice, I just decided to play my game and go after every ball that comes my way.”


Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.