Duke Faces Pitt at Home, Syracuse on the Road

DURHAM, N.C. – With seven regular-season matches remaining, the 25th-ranked Duke volleyball team looks to add two ACC wins to its resume with contests against Pittsburgh and Syracuse on this weekend's schedule.

The Blue Devils begin by hosting Pitt Friday, Nov. 7 at 6:30 p.m. in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke makes the quick turnaround and travels to Syracuse for a 1:00 p.m. first serve Sunday, Nov. 9 against the Orange.

Following a sweep of Wake Forest Friday, Duke (17-5, 9-2 ACC) suffered its second conference loss of the season Sunday at Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils are currently third in the ACC standings behind Florida State (11-0 ACC) and North Carolina (9-1 ACC).

Despite the recent setback, Duke still boasts one of the nation's top offensive units. The Blue Devils run a 5-1 system with setter Kelsey Williams directing an offense that leads the ACC and ranks second nationally in both kills per set and assists per set.

Duke's offense features two dynamic outside hitters in Emily Sklar and Jeme Obeime. Sklar leads the team and ranks fourth in the ACC with a 4.07 kills per set average, while Obeime averages 3.32 kills per frame all while hitting at a .305 clip. Both Obeime and Sklar crossed the 1,000-kill threshold this season, becoming the first Duke teammates to accomplish the feat in the same season since Tealle Hunkus and Carrie DeMange in 2006.

Duke's defense also leads the league in digs per set, thanks in large part to the part of libero Sasha Karelov. Karelov picks up 5.42 digs per set, a mark that is tops in the ACC and 10th in the nation.

The Blue Devils and the Panthers, who sit in sixth in the conference standings, meet for the first and only time this season Friday. Pitt (19-4, 7-3 ACC) boasts one of the top defenses and service games in the ACC. Lindzey Zitzke ranks second and Delaney Clesen fifth in the ACC with averages of 0.43 and 0.36 aces per set, respectively. At libero, Clesen picks up 4.53 digs per set, which trails only Karelov's average in the ACC.

Duke and Pitt take the court for their 11th meeting. The Panthers own a 6-4 advantage in the series, however, the Blue Devils won last season's inaugural ACC meeting 3-1 in Pittsburgh.

The Blue Devil Network will stream Friday's match live via GoDuke.com. Fans can also follow live stats.

Duke faces a second new opponent this season Sunday, venturing to Syracuse (8-15, 1-10 ACC). Orange outside hitter Silvi Uattara knocks down 3.73 kills per sit to rank among the top five in the conference. Syracuse is also among the ACC leaders in blocks, led by Leah Levert and Lindsay McCabe who both average over 1.30 blocks per set.

Sunday marks the fourth meeting between the two schools. Duke owns an unblemished 3-0 mark versus Syracuse, including last season's four-set victory in Durham.

Live stats for Sunday's match are available through the Orange's official website www.cuse.com).

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