Duke Sweeps NC State to Close Regular Season

Saturday, November 29

Raleigh, N.C.

2:00 PM

Duke University

NC State

Duke Named Best College to Play Women?s Volleyball

Duke Sweeps NC State to Close Regular Season

11/29/2014 5:07:00 PM | Volleyball

By: Duke Sports Information

RALEIGH, N.C. – No. 21 Duke finished off the regular season with a sweep of NC State, taking to the road to down the Wolfpack 3-0 (25-18, 25-15, 25-15) Saturday afternoon at Reynolds Gymnasium.

The Duke (22-7, 14-4 ACC) offense enjoyed another tremendous outing, amassing 49 kills on .388 hitting. Junior outside hitter Emily Sklar hit a blistering .406 and led all players with 16 kills. Senior outside hitter Jeme Obeime and sophomore middle blocker joined Sklar in double-digit kills, registering 11 and 10, respectively.

Duke's defense was also on point and kept NC State (16-14, 5-13 ACC) off balance for much of the match. The Blue Devils outdug the Wolfpack 46-29 and Duke limited NC State to a .135 hitting percentage.

Sophomore libero Sasha Karelov anchored the defense, accumulating a match-high 18 digs.

“Our team came out ready to play, which is what we want as we head into the NCAA Tournament,” said head coach Jolene Nagel. “We were able to control the tempo from the beginning. I'm pleased how we stayed disciplined on our timing on the block and getting balls up to target so that we could transition easily.”

Duke trailed the first set 7-4 before taking control with an 11-2 span. NC State committed four of its eight first-set attack errors during that stretch, aiding the Duke cause. The Wolfpack came as close as 19-17 before Duke responded with back-to-back kills from Jordan Tucker and Sklar. A Karelov ace established set point and a Wolfpack miscue sealed the set, 25-18.

The Blue Devils posted a .324 hitting percentage and limited the Wolfpack to a .114 clip. Sklar put down five kills while Karelov had seven digs.

The Blue Devils dominated the second frame, taking it 25-15 to stake a 2-0 overall advantage. Duke went up 9-4 on an NC State attack error and did not see its lead dip under five the rest of the way.

Duke hit an astounding .469 in the second set, totaling 20 kills. Sklar nearly matched NC State's kill production in the frame as the Duke junior knocked down nine kills while the Wolfpack totaled just 10.

The Blue Devils fought off two Wolfpack runs in the third set en route to a 25-15 decision. NC State cut the margin to 9-8 and 14-12, but Duke answered with of run of its own each time. After NCSU trimmed the lead to 14-12, the Blue Devils rattled off four straight points, including three Obeime kills, to negate the threat. Up by nine, Whitaker finished off the match with her 10th kill.

Senior Dariyan Hopper led the Wolfpack with 12 kills. She was the only NC State player to reach double-digit kills.

Duke will learn its NCAA Tournament fate Sunday, Nov. 30. The selection show airs at 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU.

#GoDuke