DURHAM — The North Carolina volleyball team (11-1, 3-0 ACC) swept Duke (6-8, 2-1 ACC), 3-0, on Wednesday night in Cameron Indoor Stadium to kick off its rivalry week.
Senior outside hitter Mabrey Shaffmaster gave the Blue Devils problems early from behind the service line with her top-spin serve, putting the Tar Heels up 8-1. Shaffmaster displayed her prowess from the pin as well, knocking down five kills in the first set — one of which bounced off the shoulder of a Duke defender down the line.
Just about everything was falling in favor of North Carolina. Five Tar Heels had recorded a kill by the time Duke used the second of its first-set timeouts at the 17-7 mark.
Duke, on the other hand, was regularly out-of-system due to aggressive serves and attacks by North Carolina, leading the Blue Devils to scramble to keep the ball in play on their half of the court. A composed Tar Heel squad clinched the first set 25-16.
Play was not so lopsided in the second set. After UNC went on a four-point run to go up 7-4, Duke found its rhythm through the strong arm of outside hitter Kerry Keefe, who collected five cross-court kills in the second set and led all players in kills with 13.
First-year middle blocker Jackie Taylor struggled early on, but pulled out the biggest kill of the match yet. Her hit was possible thanks to several hustle plays in just one rally by UNC, including a pancake dig by Shaffmaster, bringing the Tar Heels to a 20-16 lead. North Carolina held on and finished the set 25-21.
Shaffmaster started the third set with more of her top-spin excellence, landing an ace on Duke defender Lauren Ingram — the sister of former Tar Heel basketball player Harrison Ingram.
UNC head coach Mike Schall called his first timeout with Duke leading 10-7 in the third set. The Blue Devils began applying more pressure from the service line and, for the first time in the contest, North Carolina showed weakness in its first touch.
Despite these late troubles, redshirt sophomore opposite hitter Chelsea Thorpe continued to be a bright spot for UNC, knocking down a team-high 11 kills in the match on .500 hitting percentage. Thorpe was playing high above the net, as the transfer from Ohio State also put up a big block to put UNC up 24-23. On the next point, a hitting error from a Blue Devil attacker solidified a Tar Heel sweep of 3-0.
