McGee fuels the Tar Heels

Emily McGee is known for putting up big numbers.

But even on a weekend when her 23 total kills were overshadowed by teammates, her impact was unmistakable as she helped the North Carolina volleyball team sweep Wake Forest 3-0 and defeat Duke 3-2.

On Friday when North Carolina got off to a slow start against Wake Forest and was losing 20-15 in the first set, McGee rallied her team with five kills — including the set point — to a 10-2 run.

“Being a senior, I put a lot of pressure on myself to really be the reliable, consistent, emotional leader on the court,” McGee said.

She continued to lead by example throughout the rest of the match as UNC took the next two sets. McGee added three more kills and played error-free volleyball. Her .444 hitting percentage was her team’s highest.

McGee, who had UNC’s only service ace, said that while kills are obviously an important part of any volleyball match, staying focused on service is just as critical to get a win.

“Serving is your first offensive option in the game, so being able to go out there and serve and get the other team out of system really helps,” McGee said.

“While I was serving, I tried to make sure we got some runs and kept our focus and intensity because in a long set it’s easy to lose focus just for one point, but when we serve, that’s our first weapon to get the point.”

She continued to be dominant from the service line on Sunday, racking up three aces against Duke.

UNC would need those aces, as well as McGee’s 15 kills, 13 digs and two blocks, in the heated rivalry battle.

“If we played everyone with the same focus and mindset that we have when we play Duke, we’d play a lot better,” McGee said. “Everyone’s ready to go when Duke’s on the other side of the court.”

That focus was key to closing out the match as the Blue Devils extended it to five sets.

McGee’s role as a reliable scoring leader was particularly important when the Blue Devils came from behind to win the fourth set.

“When we got to the fifth game we knew we needed to have seniors like (McGee) out on the court to make the big plays at the end,” head coach Joe Sagula said.

“I knew that you have to go back to your top player in the fifth set to help win a match, and we did with (McGee).”

The senior said she knows that her role is to be someone who her teammates can feed off of and look to in times of need. She was exactly that this weekend.

“I try to keep everyone excited and playing well,” McGee said. “We knew (Wake Forest and Duke) were going to put up good fights, so we really wanted to come out and represent Carolina volleyball.”

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