Volleyball's Six-Match Win Streak on the Line This Weekend

DURHAM, N.C. - The Duke volleyball team will look to extend its six-match winning streak this weekend during a road trip south to Clemson and Georgia Tech on Friday and Sunday, Oct. 28-30.

Sunday's match against the Yellow Jackets at 1 p.m. will air live on ESPN3.com. Fans can access the broadcast at the following link:

http://espn.go.com/espn3/index?id=273866

The Blue Devils (14-6, 8 -3 ACC) have beaten three straight weekend's worth of opponents and have swept three of the last four teams they have faced. Duke has not lost since Oct. 2 and is currently tied with Miami for third place in the ACC. The Blue Devils are three games behind No. 19 Florida State for the conference lead.

Duke is coming off of back-to-back 3-0 sweeps over North Carolina and NC State. Libero Ali McCurdy was key in those two victories and was named ACC Player of the Week for her efforts. The 5-7 sophomore averaged 8.17 digs per set and improved her ACC-leading digs-per-set average to 5.71. McCurdy ranks eighth nationally in that category and has helped the Blue Devils hold their opponents to a combined .188 hitting percentage.

Freshman outside hitter Jeme Obeime also earned recognition from the league as the ACC Freshman of the Week. A 5-10 native of Carmel, Ind., Obeime led Duke with a .385 hitting percentage during the two victories while totaling 17 kills in six sets. On the season, she owns 160 kills and ranks fourth on the team in both kills and attacks.

The key to Duke's six-match win streak has been improved defense. Opponents are hitting just .160 against the Blue Devils during that run, and McCurdy has amassed 6.70 digs per set.

Clemson and Georgia Tech play in two of the toughest venues in the ACC, however, and will prove formidable opponents for the Blue Devils. Both the Tigers and Yellow Jackets are a combined 15-4 in their home arenas this season. Clemson is 8-1 with their only home loss coming 3-2 at the hands of North Carolina.

The Blue Devils handled Georgia Tech 3-0 in Cameron Indoor Stadium earlier this season, but needed their best volleyball to take down Clemson 3-2 that same weekend. Duke outlasted the Tigers 25-23 in a marathon fifth set that was the climax of one of the greatest college volleyball matches of the year. Duke used an all-around team effort to knock off the Tigers and finished with four players with at least 14 kills, including junior Christiana Gray who led the way with 17 and a .438 hitting percentage.

Following the road trip to Clemson, S.C., and Atlanta, Ga., the Blue Devils return to Cameron Indoor Stadium for a home weekend against Virginia and Virginia Tech on Nov. 4-5.

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