Duke Falls to Syracuse Sunday

Sunday, September 26

Durham, N.C.

1 PM

Duke University

10-3,1-1ACC

Syracuse

12-2,1-1ACC

Syracuse

Duke

Duke Falls to Syracuse Sunday

9/26/2021 4:07:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

DURHAM – The Duke volleyball team fell to Syracuse, 3-0 (22-25, 18-25, 25-27), Sunday afternoon in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

With the setback, the Blue Devils dip to 10-3 (1-1 ACC) as the Orange improve to 12-2 (1-1 ACC).

The Orange rank second in the nation in hitting percentage and today was no exception as they hit .359 percent for the match. Marina Markova and Polina Shemanova paced the offense, combining for 33 kills.

"We are hoping this early ACC match is going to turn into a very valuable experience that we learn from and get better moving forward," head coach Jolene Nagel said.

Duke was led offensively by senior Ade Owokoniran with 11 kills, while sophomore Georgia Stavrinides tallied seven and no errors to hit .538 percent. Rylie Kadel and Gracie Johnson also added six as Duke hit .221 percent as a team. Setter Alex Springate dished 26 assists and libero Mackenzie Cole reeled in 17 digs off powerful Syracuse outside hitters. At the net, Stavrinides also added three blocks to Johnson's two.

Both squads came out of the gate fast with solid hitting percentages as the Orange held a 20-17 lead, forcing Nagel to call a timeout. Stavrinides came up big on both sides of the ball with a kill before teaming up with Johnson to block, allowing Duke to pull within one (21-20). The two traded service errors, but Markova was there with another kill to take the set.

Syracuse came out in the second set to hit .459 percent with 20 kills and just three errors.

The third and ultimately final set featured eight tie scores and four lead changes in the back-and-forth affair. Syracuse jumped out to an early 5-1 lead but Duke clawed back to tie it at 12. There were five ties in the final nine points of the match. Owokoniran and Markova battled back-and-forth trading kills, but Duke was unable to hold off the Syracuse outside hitters.

In addition to Markova and Shemanova, setter Elena Karakasi dished 42 assists while three Orange players recorded double-digit digs.

Duke hits the road for its first pair of ACC road contests. The Blue Devils take on No. 4 Pitt Friday, Oct. 1 at 7 p.m., in Pittsburgh before a 3 p.m., contest against Virginia on Sunday. Sunday's match in Charlottesville will be broadcast on ACCN.

For more information on Duke volleyball, follow the Blue Devils on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching for "DukeVB".

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