Duke Holds On For 3-2 Win Over Georgia Tech

Saturday, November 8

Durham, N.C.

7:00 p.m.

Duke University

Georgia Tech

Duke Falls 3-0 At No. 9 UCLA To End NCAA Tournament Run

Duke Holds On For 3-2 Win Over Georgia Tech

11/8/2008 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball

By: Duke Sports Information

DURHAM, N.C. ? Rachael Moss put down 21 kills and recorded her second double-double of the weekend with 15 digs to lead the Duke volleyball team to 3-2 (25-17, 25-21, 23-25, 19-25, 15-9) win Saturday evening in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Moss took a team-high 56 attacks and made just three errors to finish with a .321 hitting percentage in the win, which keeps the Blue Devils (20-7, 11-4 ACC) in a tie for first place after they defeated first-place Clemson 3-1 Friday evening.

Moss was one of four Blue Devils with 10 or more kills, thanks to the effort of freshman setter Kellie Catanach, who tossed up 58 assists. Catanach directed the Blue Devils to 70 kills and saw 42 percent of her sets hit the court. She also picked up a double-double, her third straight and her 12th of the year, with 15 digs.

Jourdan Norman, Sophia Dunworth, Sue Carls and Becci Burling also fed off Catanach's success and reached double figures in kills. Carls led Duke with a .409 hitting percentage with just one error on 22 attacks, while Burling finished with a .350 clip on 20 attempts.

Georgia Tech (18-7, 10-5 ACC) hit .138 over the first two sets but rebounded to post a .420 clip over the third and fourth sets thanks to the effort of setter Mary Ashley Tippins, who came off the bench to dish out 47 assists over the final three frames. Tippins provided a much-needed spark for the Yellow Jackets and helped them climb out of a 2-0 hole to force the fifth set.

The fifth set belonged to the Blue Devils, however, after Moss put down four of her eight attacks without committing an error. Catanach also came up huge in the final frame and tossed up eight assists along with a pair of kills and three digs.

The Blue Devils more than doubled Georgia Tech's offensive output in the first set with 15 kills compared to seven from the Yellow Jackets and a .289 hitting percentage compared to the .094 clip put up by the Ramblin Wreck. Moss had four of Duke's kills without an error, while Burling and Dunworth each added three on five attacks. Catanach saw over 41 percent of her sets go down for kills and also came up big on the defensive end with a block and four digs. Georgia tech opened the frame with a 2-1 lead but gave way to four straight Duke points before getting back on track to narrow the deficit to 7-5. Duke was still able to maintain at least a three-point lead for the remainder of the match, though, before Moss ended it with her fourth kill on a set from Catanach.

The Yellow Jackets turned up the intensity in the second set and held Duke to a .178 clip, but failed to make up ground on the offensive end and fell 25-21 to fall into a 2-0 hole. Duke put back three blocks and picked up 22 digs in the frame and let just 15 of Georgia Tech's 28 attacks to hit the floor. Both Amanda Robertson and Catanach chipped in five defensive saves, while Burling came through with two blocks. Duke had trouble keeping Chrissy DeMichelis in check and gave up seven kills to the Yellow Jacket junior, but held the rest of the lineup to just eight successful attacks. Duke led by as much as five points at 20-15 before Georgia Tech mounted a comeback and came within one point of tying the score at 22-21. The Yellow Jackets committed a crucial service error, however, which was the first of three straight Duke points to close out the match. Leading 23-21 after the fault, Moss and Burling teamed up for back-to-back kills to end the set.

Down 2-0, Georgia Tech turned to Tippins to direct the offense in the third set, and it paid off in a big way as she came off the bench to serve up 17 assists in 28 attempts for a 60.7 set percentage. Her effort allowed the Yellow Jackets to hit .516 in the set with 19 kills compared to just three errors. Tippins also put down a kill herself while dishing out six to Kellogg and five to Roderick. Their performance was enough to outpace a .441 effort turned in by the Blue Devils that included a 4-for-4 effort from Burling and a 6-for-11 outing from Moss. Duke staked an early 7-3 lead in the set, but Georgia Tech battled back and tied the score 13 times before finally breaking away at 21-21 with a 4-2 run to end the set. All four of the Yellow Jackets' points during the final run came on kills from DeMichelis, Bailey Hunter and Roderick, who ended her with her fifth kill of the set.

Georgia Tech fed off the momentum from the third-set win and tied the score at 2-2 with a 25-19 win in the fourth frame. Tippins once again came up big as her 15 assists led the Yellow Jackets to a .342 clip for the set. Moss and Duke libero Claire Smalzer did their part in trying to slow down the Yellow Jackets by picking up five digs apiece, but Georgia Tech proved too strong and put down 16 of their 38 attacks. Duke hung close for the majority of the set and battled to a 19-19 tie, which prompted the Yellow Jackets to call a timeout. The break was just what the Yellow Jackets needed to swing the momentum back in their favor, as they scored six straight points to close out the set.

With the score all tied up at 2-2, Duke buckled down and took the fifth set 15-9 and the match 3-2. Moss and Catanach combined for six kills in the affair with Moss putting down four and Catanach going 2-for-2 with eight assists and three digs. The duo helped Duke break a 2-2 tie and close out the frame on a 13-7 run.

Next up for the Blue Devils is the team's last road trip of the regular season, which will take place just down the road against North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C., and in Raleigh, N.C., against NC State. Duke will face the Tar Heels on Thursday, Nov. 13, and the Wolfpack on Friday, Nov. 14.

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