The North Carolina volleyball team (11-7, 3-4 ACC) defeated Boston College (13-8, 1-6 ACC), 3-0, in Carmichael Arena on Friday evening.
What happened?
Kills from UNC junior middle hitter Kaya Merkler and graduate outside hitter Charley Niego, along with a Merkler ace helped the Tar Heels jump out to an early 9-5 lead in the first set. Niego and Merkler continued to power the offense, with sophomore outside hitter Mabrey Shaffmaster starting to heat up midway through the set.
A 5-0 run backed by four consecutive kills from first-year middle hitter Liv Mogridge and Shaffmaster helped North Carolina close out a dominant first set, 25-15.
The Eagles entered the second set with renewed aggression, jumping out to a 6-1 lead. When the lead ballooned to 12-5, North Carolina head coach Joe Sagula called a timeout. Upon the break, Shaffmaster had a highlight sequence of a powerful left side spike, followed immediately by a left side block.
After Shaffmaster’s spark, the Tar Heels began to rally back. First-year setter Anita Babic registered two service aces en route to an 8-1 scoring run that had the set tied up at 13-13. The Tar Heels and the Eagles traded short runs until the set was tied at 19 points apiece. From there, first-year libero Carson Overbeck had a service ace, followed by kills from Shaffmaster and Mogridge to take a tightly-contested second set, 25-21.
Much like the first set, the Tar Heels took a commanding 13-6 lead to start the final set, driven by kills from each of North Carolina’s starters, along with another Overbeck service ace. Secondary rotation players also had the opportunity to shine, with senior middle hitter Skyy Howard and first-year outside hitter Ava Swain chipping in kills late in the third set.
At match point, the Eagles strung together a short-lived 3-0 scoring run, but it was not enough to erase the nine-point deficit UNC had built. The Tar Heels completed their sweep in straight sets by winning the final set, 25-18.
Who stood out?
