After all, UNC's serve dominated the Wolfpack all night long.
The Tar Heels made it clear from the very beginning that they were in control and cruised to a 3-0 victory at Carmichael Auditorium.
With the score tied at five in the first game, UNC defensive specialist Caroline deRoeck jump-started the Tar Heels with back-to-back aces to begin an 18-0 run. DeRoeck's serve befuddled the Wolfpack (6-19, 1-14 in the ACC) during much of the streak.
"I've been working a lot on my serve in practice," deRoeck said. "I've been trying to concentrate on getting the ball high and getting the ball over the net."
Outside hitter Laura Greene and middle hitter Aletha Green both hit .500 during the first game, tallying nine kills between them. Greene also had four consecutive aces near the end of the game, putting UNC ahead 29-8. The Tar Heels won 30-13.
It looked like North Carolina (20-6, 12-4) was going to breeze through the second game as well. But down 19-9, the Wolfpack did its best to give the Tar Heels a competitive game.
UNC committed five errors in the next nine points, and N.C. State narrowed the Tar Heel lead to two. With the score 23-21, the North Carolina serve again came to the rescue. Senior Melissa Higgins, playing in her last home match, recorded two aces as the Tar Heels won six consecutive points en route to a 30-22 win.
"Melissa, Laura and Caroline did a really good job serving for us tonight," said UNC coach Joe Sagula. "(N.C. State) couldn't get the ball over the net because we put so much pressure on them with our serve."
The third game was all UNC. Led by setter Malaika Underwood's deep serve, the Tar Heels took an early 9-1 lead and never looked back.
