Seminoles Eliminate Tar Heels From ACCs

Outside hitter Laura Greene sent a hard spike down to an empty spot on the court. But one of the Seminoles dove, threw out an arm, got a fist under the ball and popped it up, making the dig. The ensuing rally led to FSU winning the point.

It was all downhill from there for the Tar Heels.

For only the third time this season, the No. 12 North Carolina volleyball team was on the losing end of a match, as they were dominated 3-0 by an FSU team (21-12) that never trailed in the match.

"As crazy as it sounds, it was just not our day," said UNC outside hitter Malaika Underwood. "It was their day. They played probably the best game of their career. They could not do anything wrong."

The Seminoles blitzed the Tar Heels with an offensive flurry, posting an attack percentage of .338. This was a turnaround from UNC's 3-0 victory against FSU on Nov. 16 in Chapel Hill, when North Carolina held the 'Noles to a .080 attack percentage.

"Their outside hitters did a very good job of taking us out of our defensive system," said UNC coach Joe Sagula, who earned ACC Coach of the Year honors earlier this week. "It wasn't a good matchup for us. It wasn't any one thing. As a team, we collectively didn't stay within our system real well."

But the defense wasn't the only element that escaped UNC (29-3). Greene, who was named ACC Player of the Year, hit only .190 for the match.

FSU coach Todd Kress said that taking Greene out of the game was a large part of Florida State's strategy.

"We weren't going to shut her down," he said. "We just wanted to slow her down. So we tried to run a lot of stuff at her, tried to move her short and deep, and make her serve receive."

A big difference in the game was the performance of Florida State outside hitters Erica Bunch and Kristin Frye. They combined for 34 kills in 66 attempts in Saturday's rematch. Even with Bunch's four errors factored in, that comes out to an impressive .455 attack percentage.

As well as the Seminoles played offensively against UNC in the semi-final, Virginia played at the same level defensively in the Tar Heels' first round matchup on Friday, a 3-1 UNC win.

UVa. (9-25) notched 110 digs in the match, but UNC matched the Cavaliers, posting 111. Greene tied the tournament record with 36. UNC prevailed on the strength of double-digit kills from Greene, Pyles and Underwood.

The Tar Heels' success Friday didn't carry over to their match against the 'Noles, but they are already putting it behind them. UNC hosts Marquette on Friday at Carmichael Auditorium.

"I feel sorry for Marquette," Underwood said. "Because I think we're going to come out tough."

The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu.