Volleyball: Tar Heels’ recent win brings ACC record to 2-1

Heading into its first conference home game, North Carolina sat with a 1-1 ACC record, and the Tar Heels knew how much they needed a win.

“Every match at this point in the season is important,” coach Joe Sagula said. “To come back after being down that second game hopefully gave us a lot of confidence.”

UNC grabbed that win Thursday night against the Maryland Terrapins 3-1. That brings UNC to 2-1 in ACC play as the Tar Heels head into the heart of their schedule.

The win on Thursday seemed to justify a number of changes the Tar Heels made to their team since starting ACC play.

Among those changes is freshman Cora Harms taking the starting setter position, and she believes she has earned it.

“Every practice I just went for everything and was the ultimate aggressive player,” Harms said. “That made me get more aggressive in games, and when I was given a chance, I did well.”

Harms landed four kills and posted a career-high 41 assists against Maryland, but Sagula noted that Harms contributes more to the team than just statistics.

“I think right now she is doing a great job with her energy and her spirit on the court,” Sagula said. “She sets a different tone. She’s sped up the tempo of our offense the way she plays.”

The Tar Heels play Boston College on Friday and take their play on the road again against tough Virginia and Virginia Tech teams next week.

Sagula knows that the team has a number of tough games ahead of them, especially on the road against conference favorite No. 17 Florida State on October 25.

“I think the biggest challenge is Florida State. They have the most physical talent right now,” Sagula said. “Can we compete against them? Absolutely, we can beat them, but it would be an upset.”

But right now, the biggest obstacle for the Tar Heels has nothing to do with who is on the other side of the net.

“We are our own opponent. At times, we are our own worst enemy,” Sagula said. “I think if we can not let that happen, we’ll compete with anybody.”


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